PRODUCTS -
March 11, 2010
RPAG Expands Scorecard System to Rank ETFs
March 11, 2010 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Retirement Plan Advisory Group (RPAG) has announced that its proprietary Scorecard System will now track, monitor, and rank more than 300 exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
MARKETS -
March 11, 2010
Bond Funds Still Winning as Investors Dive Back into Market
March 11 2010 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - U.S. mutual fund investors put an estimated $30 billion into stock and bond mutual funds in February, according to Strategic Insight, an Asset International Company.
RULES/REGS -
March 11, 2010
VA Lawmakers Approve Ban on Mandatory Health Coverage
March 11, 2010 (PLANSPONSOR.com) – Virginia's General Assembly has approved legislation banning mandated health insurance coverage.
PRODUCTS -
March 11, 2010
Targeted Communications Could Help Achieve Plan Results
March 11, 2010 (PLANSPONSOR.com) – A recent effort by Mercer and Synapses Inc., a provider of personalized 401(k) education, products, and services, indicates using targeted employee communications can achieve better plan results.
FINANCE -
March 10, 2010
SEC Cautions on Phony Web Site Targeting Madoff Victims
March 10, 2010 (PLANSPONSOR.com) – As if the folks stung by Bernie Madoff didn’t have enough problems, looks like someone is hoping they’ll fall for another scam.
MARKETS -
March 10, 2010
Transferring Participants Have a Fixed Sense in February
March 10, 2010 (PLANSPONSOR.com) – For a change, 401(k) participants who realigned their balances didn’t seem to be tracking the market.
HR/BENEFITS -
March 10, 2010
DC Participants Sought More Risk in 2009
March 10, 2010 (PLANSPONSOR.com) – Throughout much of the 2009 market rally, activity as measured by fund flows within the Callan DC Index, was above average, as participants sought to increase their exposure to risky assets.
RULES/REGS -
March 10, 2010
Senate Passes COBRA Subsidy Extension
March 10, 2010 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - The U.S. Senate has approved legislation that would further extend COBRA health insurance premium subsidies, Business Insurance reports.
PRODUCTS -
March 11, 2010
Principal Gets DoL Certification
March 11, 2010 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - The Department of Labor (DOL) has given its seal of approval to the Principal Financial Group for the creation and electronic submission of Form 5500.
PRODUCTS -
March 10, 2010
Baden Expands Reach of its TPA Solutions
March 10, 2010 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Baden Retirement Plan Services (Baden), an Ascensus company, is rolling out its services nationally through Ascensus’ sales force of twelve Regional Vice Presidents (RVPs).
PRODUCTS -
March 10, 2010
Schwab Offers Roth IRA Conversion Resources
March 10, 2010 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Schwab is making additional resources and tools available to investors, independent investment adviser clients, and 401(k) plan participants designed to help navigate Roth IRA conversion decisions.
HR/BENEFITS -
March 10, 2010
BLS Finds Employer Comp Costs Remain Stable
March 10, 2010 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Private industry employers spent an average of $27.42 per hour worked for total employee compensation in December 2009, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported.
HR/BENEFITS -
March 10, 2010
Americans Focused on Rebuilding Finances
March 10, 2010 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Americans are no longer dwelling on concerns about the economy and instead are focused on rebuilding their finances for the future, according to the latest Principal Financial Well-Being Index.
PRODUCTS -
March 10, 2010
Fidelity to Offer Seminar on Tax-diversified Retirement Portfolios
March 10, 2010 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - To help educate investors on the
potential benefits of building a tax-diversified retirement portfolio, Fidelity
is launching a new "Tax-Smart Investing" seminar.
HR/BENEFITS -
March 10, 2010
Tax Advisers Expect More than a Third of Clients to Convert to Roth IRA
March 10, 2010 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - A Fidelity Investments study finds
40% of investors working with tax advisers are now eligible for Roth IRA
conversions, and more than a third (35%) are expected to complete a conversion
by year end.
FINANCE -
March 10, 2010
Largest Corporate DB Plans See Funding Bump in February
March 10, 2010 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - The funded status of the 100 largest corporate defined benefit pension plans improved by $11 billion during February 2010, as measured by the Milliman 100 Pension Funding Index (PFI).
PRODUCTS -
March 09, 2010
BrightScope, Acceleration Retirement Team on Prospecting Solution
March 9, 2010 (PLANSPONSOR.com) – A new partnership claims to offer retirement plan advisers a new way to prospect and acquire plan sponsor clients.
HR/BENEFITS -
March 10, 2010
Employers to Stick with Bonus Levels in 2010
March 10, 2010 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - The majority of employers report their bonus payments in 2010 will be similar to what they paid last year, according to a Buck Consultants survey released today.
PRODUCTS -
March 10, 2010
Global Online HR Training Service Launched
March 10, 2010 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Mercer has launched a new online training and certification program with worldwide peer networking for human resource professionals and companies worldwide.
RULES/REGS -
March 10, 2010
Senate Passes Pension Funding Relief
March 10, 2010 (PLANSPONSOR.com) – The U.S. Senate has passed S.Amdt.
3430, which would allow defined benefit pension plan sponsors to spread out
funding their shortfalls.