Pentegra announced today that Keith Cattaneo has joined the
organization as a regional director
for qualified retirement plan sales. Reporting to Pete Swisher, Pentegra senior
vice president of national sales, Cattaneo will spearhead the company’s
business development efforts throughout Northern California and Oregon.
According to Swisher, “Keith is a talented professional with
extensive industry knowledge and a strong track record of professional success
and will play a key role in marketing Pentegra’s qualified retirement plan and
fiduciary outsourcing solutions to advisers and their clients. The past five
years of steady growth are giving way to a true breakthrough period for
Pentegra due to the rising demand for genuine 3(16) and multiple-employer-plan
expertise.”
Cattaneo, having more than 20 years of experience in the
retirement plan industry, brings extensive knowledge to Pentegra. Most
recently, he was with NFP as producer and business development lead. Previously,
he spent seven years with Great-West Financial as a 401(k) regional sales director
for Northern California and Southern Nevada, as well as Lincoln Financial Group. He
began his career with Franklin Templeton Investments, where he held a number of
operational positions before joining the firm’s 401(k) team.
Says Cattaneo, “Pentegra offers clear differentiators in the
retirement plan marketplace. Its fiduciary outsourcing solutions and multiple employer
plan offerings are unique in the industry today and a clear advantage.”
He holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from St.
Mary’s College along with FINRA Series 6 and 63 securities registrations and
health and life insurance licenses.
NEXT: ABG to
Partner with Stadion for Managed Account Retirement Strategy
Stadion Money
Management, known for its participant-level, customized retirement solutions
and nontraditional investment strategies, has announced a partnership with Alliance Benefit Group LLC (ABG). ABG
member firms will have access to Stadion’s managed account retirement strategy,
StoryLine, built with SPDR exchange-traded
funds (ETFs). Stadion describes StoryLine as “an innovative retirement
planning solution built specifically for 401(k) participants in adviser-sold
plans.”
“Our rationale in making StoryLine available to ABG’s network is
to enable the advisers and recordkeepers who comprise this group to offer plan
sponsors a more personalized managed account solution than target-date funds
[TDFs],” says Jud Doherty, president and
CEO of Stadion. “Since its launch in early 2016, we’ve seen overwhelming
enthusiasm for StoryLine’s ability to provide a scalable, participant-focused,
technology-based solution that helps participants forge their own retirement
paths.”
StoryLine approaches every plan sponsor and employee as being
unique. The StoryLine process first seeks insight into a plan’s overall makeup,
with the intent of tailoring default options for the individual plan sponsor.
Then, via Stadion’s new participant-centric web interface, each employee can
further define his own investment path based on personal risk profiles.
StoryLine allows—at the employee’s discretion—the inclusion of
outside and spousal assets to facilitate more comprehensive retirement
planning. The end goal is to have each participant on a personalized path that
goes well beyond typical age-based investment strategies.
Says Don Mackanos, president
of Alliance Benefit Group, “One of ABG’s core values is flexibility, which
is reflected in the way we work with advisers. This focus aligns seamlessly
with StoryLine’s ability to customize retirement solutions based on the
specifics of each participant’s individual circumstances and is something we
really value.”
NEXT: Provident
to Move Into Ascensus’ Retirement Division
Ascensus has entered into an agreement to
acquire Provident Trust Group.
Completion of the acquisition is subject to customary closing conditions
including regulatory approval. Provident, a nondiscretionary administrator and
custodian of individual retirement account (IRA) assets, will become part of
Ascensus’ retirement division immediately upon closing of the acquisition.
“Welcoming Provident and its dedicated team of associates to the Ascensus
family allows our company to participate in the large and growing self-directed
IRA markets that are focused on traditional and alternative asset classes,” says
Shannon Kelly, Ascensus’ president of
retirement. “In the end, this acquisition is about offering our clients
even more ways to save for the future.”
“Provident’s stated mission has been to empower customers to self-direct their
retirement assets through innovative retirement plan solutions, ease of access,
and an extraordinary customer experience,” says Theresa Fette, Provident’s CEO. “By joining Ascensus, we’re
reaffirming our commitment to a marketplace that provides clients with greater
visibility and access to alternative assets.”
“Ascensus views Provident as an anchor business with best-of-breed technology
platforms that leverage digital, e-signature, workflow, document management and
trust accounting capabilities,” says Raghav Nandagopal, Ascensus’ executive
vice president of corporate development and mergers and acquisition. “It also
holds the potential for additional bolt-on acquisition opportunities to create
significant scale, efficiency and margin expansion.”
Macquarie Capital served as exclusive financial adviser, and Howard &
Howard acted as legal counsel to Provident. Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP acted
as legal counsel to Ascensus.
NEXT: Great-West Financial
and Putnam Announce New Head Appointees
Great-West
Financial announced the appointment of Scott C. Sipple as president of
Great-West Investments, where he will provide leadership of the firm’s efforts
to identify, create and deliver investment, retirement income and advice
solutions for the retirement market. The appointment is effective immediately.
Sipple joins Great-West from Putnam
Investments in Boston, where he served as head of global investment strategies.
Putnam veteran Michael Wands, with
over 30 years of industry experience, will succeed Sipple as head of global investment strategies atPutnam.
Great-West Financial and Putnam
Investments are the U.S. operating companies of Great-West Lifeco, both of
which are led by Robert L. Reynolds,
who serves as president
and CEO at each company. Sipple and Wands will report directly to Reynolds at
their respective firms.
“Since its formal establishment in
2016, Great-West Investments has been a great growth story—and with Scott’s
leadership we will continue that expansion,” says Reynolds. “The breadth of
Scott’s experience uniquely qualifies him for his new role in which he will
lead the creation and delivery of solutions employed by plan sponsors and their
advisers to the benefit of individual savers.”
A graduate of Dartmouth College,
Sipple joined Putnam in 2009 and has worked in the investment industry since
1985. He has 30 years of industry experience in numerous senior leadership
roles on both the buy and sell sides. He began his career in equity capital
markets and trading, ultimately heading capital markets for a large regional
investment bank. His
responsibilities over the years have included global portfolio strategy,
product management, managed accounts and institutional banks and strategic
relationships.
Wands replaces Sipple at Putnam
Investments, effective immediately, and is responsible for overseeing teams
focused on equity, fixed income and global asset allocation products for the
firm’s retail, institutional and retirement businesses.
“Mike brings enormous investment
management and client-focused experience to his new role leading a highly
talented team that serves as a powerful bridge between Putnam’s product
manufacturing and distribution capabilities,” Reynolds says.
NEXT: Franklin Templeton Employs Two Retirement
Plan Strategists
Franklin Templeton’s
Kevin Murphy has been promoted to the newly established role of national retirement plan strategist. Based
in New York City, Murphy, a senior vice president, reports to Yaqub Ahmed, head of defined contribution
(DC) – U.S.
In this new role, Murphy is responsible for managing and growing
the firm’s mid-market DC advisory home office relationships. His primary
focus is on mid-market advisory firms with a national footprint, and he serves
as the primary liaison with these firms at their home offices. He will
also be responsible for the overall segment strategy and implementation. Murphy
also leads the firm’s health savings account (HSA) initiative.
Murphy, who previously served as a senior retirement plan strategist,
has 18 years of industry experience and joined Franklin Templeton in 2011 as a
DC specialist, partnering with both the retail and institutional
divisions. Prior to this, he was a regional vice president with Columbia
Management’s defined contribution investment only (DCIO) team. Murphy
holds a B.S. in agriculture from the University of Delaware. He was selected by
the National Association of Plan Advisors (NAPA) for its list of the Top 100
Defined Contribution Wholesalers in the industry, 2014 through 2017.
Additionally, Liam Grubb
has joined Franklin Templeton as vice
president and senior retirement plan strategist, filling Murphy’s previous
role and also reporting to Ahmed. Grubb, also, is based in New York City,
and covers the Mid-Atlantic Region, which spans the East Coast from the New
York metropolitan area to Virginia. His primary focus will be marketing and
servicing Franklin Templeton’s accumulation and income investment solutions in
DC plans through retirement-focused advisers and consultants.
Grubb comes with 10 years of industry experience, having most
recently served as a senior associate within PIMCO’s defined contribution practice.
Prior to PIMCO, he was a senior account manager at Bloomberg Finance working in
New York City and Hong Kong. He holds a B.A. in government from Georgetown
University and earned a Masters in global finance from the New York University
Stern School of Business. He holds the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA)
credential and is a CAIA Level II candidate.
“The U.S. retirement market continues to rapidly evolve, and it is
critical that we expand our resources and maintain a client-centric approach
with professionals such as Kevin and Liam, who truly understand the industry’s
shifting dynamics,” says Dan O’Lear,
head of retail distribution, U.S. advisory services and president, Franklin
Templeton Distributors Inc.
“We remain focused on the mantra of ‘Improving participant
retirement outcomes’ by partnering with plan sponsors, providers and
advisers, and we accomplish this by delivering innovative outcomes-based
solutions through our DC professionals such as Kevin and Liam,” says Ahmed.
NEXT: DWC Adds
Former Manager of Retirement Plan Services as Partner
DWC – The 401(k)
Experts
has expanded its team by adding Jennifer
Gibbs Swets, ERPA, QPA, QKA [Enrolled Retirement Plan Agent, Qualified
Pension Administrator, Qualified 401(k) Administrator], as its newest partner.
Swets’ announcement follows that of Lori
Reay, who joined DWC as a partner
in September.
“Jen’s passion for the industry and dedication to client service
fits seamlessly with our firm. Her work ideology—treating each case with
attentiveness to individual client needs—aligns seamlessly with the DWC company
philosophy,” says Keith Clark, DWC co-founder
and managing partner.
Swets, a former senior manager of retirement plan services at
Dixon Hughes Goodman LLP, brings over 15 years of retirement services
experience. She specializes in creative and innovative plan design, adding a
valuable skill set to the DWC team.
“The retirement plan industry is ever-changing, and it’s crucial
to find a company that proactively adapts to those changes, while also serving
its clients accordingly,” Swets says. “DWC has consistently and successfully
responded to industry changes in the best way that serves its clients.”
Based in Hampton Roads, Virginia, Swets will work with clients and
financial advisers on a local and national level to help design and maintain
retirement plans. Besides Clark and Reay, she joins existing partners Doug Hoefer and Adam Pozek.
NEXT: Proskauer
Promotes 23 Lawyers to Partner or Senior Counsel
International law firm Proskauer
today announced the promotions of 23 lawyers—14 to partner and nine to senior
counsel.
“We are pleased to promote this outstanding group to our ranks as partner
and senior counsel,” says Proskauer Chairman
Joe Leccese. “We applaud them on achieving this significant milestone in
their careers and are confident that they will continue to make remarkable
contributions to our clients in the years ahead.”
The firm’s new partners and senior counsel who serve the
retirement and wealth management industries are:
Partner
- Christopher Ahn, in Los Angeles, represents purchasers, sellers and financial
advisers in connection with merger and acquisition transactions, debt and
equity securities transactions, corporate restructurings, the formation of
joint ventures and strategic partnerships, and corporate and board governance.
- Camille Higonnet, in Boston, specializes in fund formation, institutional investor
representation, co-investments and buy- and sell-side secondary transactions,
as well as day-to-day compliance and regulatory matters for private fund
sponsors. She advises a broad spectrum of private fund clients on the
structuring and operations of private funds globally, and advises private fund
sponsors throughout the lifespan of a fund, including with respect to ongoing
general partner and management company internal governance and day-to-day
operational issues.
- Matthew McBride, in Boston, represents private equity sponsors in the organization
and operation of private investment funds across multiple asset classes and
strategies. In addition, he also advises sponsors on internal economic
arrangements, joint ventures, spin-outs, regulatory compliance and other
governance matters.
- Andrew Shore, in London, advises a range of fund managers, from first-time
funds to market leaders, on all aspects of their business, including the
formation, raising and operation of their investment funds. He also represents
clients on secondary transactions and co-investments, and advises institutional
investors with respect to their fund investments.
Senior Counsel
- Nathaniel
Birdsall, in New York City, advises
high-net-worth individuals and families in their personal tax, gift and estate
planning. He advises clients with respect to charitable gifting, insurance
planning and intergenerational transfers of closely held business interests,
marketable securities, real estate and tangible property.
- Anthony Cacace, in New York City, advises clients on the full spectrum of
employee benefits matters, with a focus on the representation of boards of
trustees of multiemployer pension and welfare benefit funds governed by the Employee
Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA). He counsels these boards with respect
to compliance issues and also litigates on their behalf.
- Brian Huber, in Boston, focuses on tax and economic planning for a broad
range of private fund clients. He advises private equity fund managers on tax
aspects of fundraising and internal organizational matters, as well as
investment activities. He also represents U.S. and non-U.S. investors in
connection with the tax and economic aspects of their investments in venture
capital funds, buyout funds, hedge funds and other investment partnerships and
structures.
- Charles Lee, in Washington, D.C., advises companies, investment funds and
individuals on compliance with the federal securities laws, with a focus on
preparing U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filings for public
companies and their shareholders, advising on capital raising and business
combination transactions, and maintaining best practice corporate governance
policies.
- Damian Myers, in Washington, D.C., counsels private and public companies on
matters related to employee benefits and executive compensation law, with a
focus on tax qualified retirement and health and welfare plan compliance.
- Rachel Philion, in New York City, represents management in a broad range of
employment-related litigation, including wage-and-hour, employment
discrimination, harassment, retaliation and compensation disputes, as well as
whistleblowing, wrongful discharge and breach of contract matters. She is
co-head of the firm’s wage-and-hour practice group, and has significant
experience litigating nationwide class and collective actions, in addition to
trying jury and non-jury cases.
- Lindsay Rehns, in Boca Raton, assists high-net-worth individuals and families
with developing suitable estate plans to maximize and protect the transfer of
wealth. She counsels clients on estate, gift and generation-skipping transfer
tax planning as well as probate, estate and trust administration and fiduciary
litigation matters.
More
information regarding the promotions can be found here.
NEXT: Former Field VP for OneAmerica Rejoins
Shelley Schumacher has rejoined OneAmerica as field
vice president, key accounts. She’ll be based in the company’s Milwaukee
office.
Schumacher has over 30 years of
experience in the retirement plan industry, serving in both provider and adviser
roles. She had spent more than a decade at BMO Retirement Services before
transitioning to OneAmerica, following the September 1, 2015, acquisition. She
spent a year as field vice president - service before taking another
opportunity. She rejoined
OneAmerica in August.
“We welcome back
Shelley to a role that is crucial to OneAmerica,” says Alan R. Blaskowski, senior field vice president - service. “She
will assist with complex client service situations that arise with key
relationships throughout the country.”
Her areas of
focus include mergers and acquisitions, sales opportunities, and liaison for
relationship managers/executives, advisers and plan sponsors.