Retirement Industry People Moves

Verus Hires Investment Professionals for Pennsylvania Team

Verus has added two investment professionals to the team working out of its Pittsburgh office.

Chris Shelby will be added as director of private markets and Evan Benedict was selected as consulting associate. Shelby and Benedict join investment consulting industry veterans Mark Brubaker, managing director, senior consultant and a member of Verus’ Management Committee, and Ted Herman, managing director, senior consultant.

As a director on the Verus Private Markets investment team that has a presence in all offices, Shelby will provide investment advice to clients to help implement and maintain private markets portfolios. He will focus on the sourcing of investment opportunities, performing due diligence, monitoring investments and generating investment content. His coverage will span the private markets with a focus on private credit and private equity with additional responsibilities across venture capital, growth equity and real assets.

Prior to joining Verus, Shelby was a senior vice president at Wilshire Associates, where he was a member of the Private Markets Group. Shelby graduated from the University of Pittsburgh with summa cum laude honors, earning a bachelor’s degree in business administration, majoring in finance with a minor in economics. He is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) charterholder and a member of the CFA Society of Pittsburgh.

Benedict’s primary responsibilities will include assisting clients and collaborating with consultants to prepare deliverables and in-depth portfolio analysis. Benedict has serviced a wide variety of clients, most notably corporate defined benefit (DB) and defined contribution (DC) plans. Prior to joining Verus, Benedict was an associate at Wilshire Associates. Benedict graduated from the University of Pittsburgh with a bachelor’s degree in business administration with a major in finance.

FuturePlan by Ascensus Announces New DVP

FuturePlan by Ascensus has announced that Aaron McIsaac will assume divisional vice president (DVP) responsibilities for the organization’s Southern California region as a result of DVP Greg Taylor’s planned retirement. The change is effective on June 30.

McIsaac will offer consultative support to retirement plan clients while expanding relationships with strategic recordkeeping and financial adviser partners in both the Northwest/Central and Southern California regions. He will continue to report to Kasey Price, FuturePlan’s head of sales, while leveraging his two decades of business development and leadership experience to create and implement growth strategies for FuturePlan’s fast-growing sales team.

McIsaac has been a FuturePlan DVP since January 2020. Prior to that, he was a regional sales director at Goldleaf Partners, a Minnesota-based third-party administrator (TPA) that became part of FuturePlan in 2019. While at Goldleaf Partners, he helped develop the organization into a prominent 3(16) fiduciary services provider. He has also held leadership positions at Benefit Administration Corp. and Partridge River Inc. McIsaac earned his bachelor’s degree in management from The College of St. Scholastica.

Taylor joined FuturePlan’s sales leadership team as a DVP in August 2019. Before that, he was the founder and president of QBI, a California-based TPA recognized for its broad expertise in human capital management and integrated benefits that became part of FuturePlan in 2018. He has been an active member in industry organizations—including the American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries (ASPPA) and the National Institute of Pension Administrators (NIPA)—throughout his career. Taylor received a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).

“Greg has been well known and respected in the TPA industry for more than 40 years, and regularly inspires clients and associates with his remarkable work ethic, business acumen and talent for making meaningful connections on a personal level,” Price says. “FuturePlan is extraordinarily grateful for his years of service and wishes him all the best in retirement.

“Aaron’s ability to lead and mentor during both positive and challenging times will ensure that our clients in the Southern California region remain in good hands,” Price continues. “He will provide them with the same exceptional level of support needed to help them meet their objectives.”

American Trust Acquires Denver-Based LT Trust Co.

American Trust Co., a full-service provider of retirement solutions to small- and midsized plan sponsors, has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Denver-based LT Trust Co., a national retirement plan provider and recordkeeper.

LT Trust is a full-service retirement plan provider, offering recordkeeping, trust and custodial services to financial intermediaries and their clients. Chairman and CEO Bob Beriault will continue as a consultant to American Trust, as well as a shareholder, and the firm’s approximately 100 employees will all join American Trust at the close of the transaction.

“LT Trust shares our deep commitment to adviser success, evident through the development of its advanced technology platforms and effective experience-driven solutions,” says Micah DiSalvo, chief revenue officer at American Trust. “In addition, LT Trust has extensive experience in the institutional outsourcing space, allowing greater flexibility for participants and plan sponsors, while uniting various players across the industry with the shared goal of improving outcomes for participants. We are eager to leverage that expertise to further amplify the industry impact.”

“It is more important than ever to be innovative and technology-focused to succeed in today’s retirement landscape,” adds Beriault. “American Trust is recognized for the commitment it’s made to the retirement space, consistently innovating and growing to better serve its clients throughout the retirement ecosystem. We are excited to join the team and provide additional technology, services and resources to our collective clients.”

This is American Trust’s third strategic acquisition in the past 12 months. Following the closing of the transaction, American Trust and its affiliates will support more than $125 billion of total retirement assets under advisement, management or custody.