PNC to Take on Fiduciary Role

PNC will now offer investment fiduciary services to its defined contribution (DC) clients through its PNC Retirement Solutions platform.

“With the Department of Labor’s continued focus on fee transparency and fiduciary responsibilities, we are helping our retirement plan sponsor clients mitigate their risk by taking on the fiduciary role of advising on or managing investment lineups and providing fund options and services suitable for the particular needs and abilities of their workforce,” says Bonnie Fawcett, managing director for PNC Retirement Solutions.

PNC will offer a non-discretionary 3(21) investment advisory service and a discretionary 3(38) investment management service. The first will provide assistance with selecting and monitoring the investment options to be offered to plan participants, while allowing the plan sponsor to maintain discretion over the plan’s investment lineup. The 3(38) investment management service built for different plan demographic profiles will assume full discretion over fund selection, monitoring, and replacement.

Fiduciary Investment Services is aimed at clients using the firm’s Vested Interest bundled DC solution and not working with independent fiduciaries. These services will also be offered on a stand-alone basis to plan sponsors that do not wish to change their current plan recordkeeper at this time. Vested Interest will continue to offer bundled DC plan services without Fiduciary Investment Services to plan sponsors who have appointed a third-party investment adviser. 

“We have introduced a refined level of fund screening and monitoring that will assist plan sponsors in meeting their obligations under ERISA and ensure that their employees are well served as they invest and plan for retirement,” says Fawcett.