Products September 5, 2019

Investment Product and Service Launches

John Hancock announces second round of reduced fees, and Voya Financial releases new TDF solution.

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Art by Jackson Epstein
Art by Jackson Epstein

Art by Jackson Epstein

John Hancock Announces Second Round of Reduced Fees

John Hancock Investment Management, a company of Manulife Investment Management, has announced expense reductions on additional funds, representing a combination of direct management fee cuts, contractual expense cap reductions, and new breakpoints primarily sourced through growing economies of scale, providing further value to shareholders.

Expense reductions of up to seven basis points vary by fund and class and provide immediate cost savings to shareholders. The reductions decrease these funds’ fees by an average of 5.25 basis points.

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The funds affected are John Hancock Investment Grade Bond Fund, John Hancock Disciplined Value International Fund, John Hancock New Opportunities Fund, and John Hancock Fundamental All Cap Core Fund and were made effective on July 1. Front-end sales charges on Class A shares of both John Hancock Balanced Fund and John Hancock Multimanager Lifestyle Portfolios were also reduced effective on August 1.

This is the second announcement made this year by John Hancock Investment Management regarding expense reductions. These fee reductions for John Hancock Multifactor Sector ETF suite, John Hancock Floating Rate Income Fund, and John Hancock Small Cap Value Fund were made effective on the first of January. They are consistent with John Hancock’s approach to building a multimanager network of specialized asset managers, through a rigorous investment oversight and due diligence process, to offer the best choices to shareholders, the firm says.

“Our shareholders are looking for the best place to invest, and regardless of how an investor implements our funds, comparing funds and fees is a part of the process to build a portfolio that suits an investor’s risk-and-return profile,” says Andrew Arnott, president and CEO of John Hancock Investment Management and head of Wealth and Asset Management at Manulife Investment Management, United States and Europe. “We continue to reduce fees across our offering so investors may find even more value when making their investment decisions.”

Additional information on these expense reductions, including details about the impact on other fund share classes, can be found in the funds’ latest prospectuses.

Voya Financial Releases New TDF Solution

Voya Financial, Inc. announced that its retirement business has added a new target-date fund (TDF) solution.

Designed by flexPATH Strategies Inc., MyCompass Index is now available to all of Voya’s retirement plan customers. The new solution is designed to address retirement needs of individual plan participants.

“As one of the most widely used investment options in defined contribution plans, target-date funds provide a relatively simple way for Americans to save and invest for retirement,” says Charlie Nelson, CEO of Retirement and Employee Benefits at Voya Financial. “However, we recognize that many individuals have diverse financial goals and risk tolerances, which may not be defined by a date alone. MyCompass Index combines the ease of target-date fund selection with the unique needs of plan participants.”

Voya’s MyCompass Index leverages the expertise of flexPATH retirement planning capabilities along with fund management from experts in the marketplace, including Voya’s own stable-value capabilities. In addition to a competitive expense structure and integrated enrollment experience, the solution also offers participants added protection against market volatility and uncertainty. 

The MyCompass Index includes features and benefits such as multiple participant glide paths; fund name transparency; and fiduciary protection.

“We understand that no two individuals are alike when it comes to planning for their future,” says Jeff Cimini, senior vice president, Retirement Product Management at Voya Financial. “The reality is that most plan sponsors and their participants today are looking for investment solutions that are more tailored to their individual needs. We’re excited to offer the new MyCompass Index solution to participants, as it provides a unique saving solution that is truly focused on the individual, helping them to secure the best possible retirement outcome.”

Benefits September 5, 2019

Investing HSA Savings Is Key to Building Accounts

It is also important to fund accounts right away.

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According to Devenir’s 2019 Midyear HSA Market Statistics & Trends report, there are now over 26 million health savings accounts (HSAs), holding $61.7 billion in assets, a year-over-year increase of 12% for accounts and 20% for HSA assets for the period ended June 30, 2019.

The growth is understandable as HSAs are now being touted as a vehicle for saving for health care expenses in retirement. New guidance from the IRS, which expands the list of preventive care benefits permitted to be provided by a high deductible health plan (HDHP) under section 223(c)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code without a deductible, or with a deductible below the applicable minimum deductible (self-only or family) for an HDHP, offers the potential for even more growth.

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The Devenir report suggests HSA providers, employers and employees are seeing the advantage of being able to invest their HSA savings. HSA investment accounts have an average total balance of $15,982—six times larger than a non-investment holder’s average account balance. There was $13.3 billion estimated in HSA investment assets as of June 30—an estimated 35% year-over-year increase. Devenir says 22% of all HSA assets are in investments as of June 30th, 2019.

But, employees will not reap the benefits of HSAs if they don’t fund them. Devenir continues to see seasonality in the percentage of accounts that are unfunded. Accounts are often opened during the fall open enrollment season, but remain unfunded until early the following year. Halfway through 2019, about 15% of all accounts were unfunded, similar to a year ago.

Jack Towarnicky, executive director of the PSCA, has said employers struggle with telling employees how to allocate their savings dollars. He suggested that employers make sure the HSA account is open with the employer or employee contributing at least one dollar, and it can be funded later to cover expenses incurred. Ken Forsythe, head of product strategy at Empower Retirement, noted that if the account is not open with the first dollar, employees cannot get any potential employer contributions. Entry-level employees to top executives need HSA education.

Devenir’s report is available here.

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