Deals and People January 12, 2024

Retirement Industry People Moves

NFP names Greene president of benefits unit; CFP Board appoints Boersen as chair; Carter joins Sanctuary Wealth; and more.

Reported by

NFP Names Greene President of Benefits Unit

Tony Greene

Insurance company, benefits consultant, wealth manager and retirement plan adviser NFP Corp. promoted Tony Greene to president of the company’s executive benefits division on January 1, the company announced.

For more stories like this, sign up for the PLANSPONSOR NEWSDash daily newsletter.

Greene will be responsible for driving growth for the division by designing and implementing programs that help organizations attract and retain top talent, according to a spokesperson.

Greene, who succeeds Joe Carpenter, now reports to Ed O’Malley, an executive vice president and NFP’s head of insurance brokerage and consulting.

“Tony’s experience, leadership and relationships within NFP and across the industry make him the ideal person to lead our executive benefits division,” O’Malley said in a statement. “Tony has been instrumental in driving the growth of this business, cultivating integrated sales and expanding awareness of how executive benefits programs can be game-changing for organizations. We are excited to see his impact on the division’s next phase of growth.”

CFP Board Appoints Boersen as Chair

Matt Boersen

The CFP Board announced that Matt Boersen was appointed to chair its board of directors, leading the CFP Board of Standards and CFP Board Center for Financial Planning.

Boersen is responsible for leading the professional body that certifies nearly 100,000 financial planning professionals across the U.S, according to the press release.

“Guiding CFP Board is a profound privilege,” said Boersen. “In the evolving economy, ensuring public access to ethical, competent financial planning is crucial. We must reach out to younger generations to build a diverse financial planning workforce. I look forward to collaborating with CFP Board’s leadership and CFP professionals nationwide to expand this talent pipeline.”

Boersen was elected by his board of director peers in 2022 to serve as 2023 board chair-elect.

Carter Joins Sanctuary Wealth From Merrill Lynch

Rachel Carter

Sanctuary Wealth announced Rachel Carter as a senior retirement benefits consultant working exclusively with corporate retirement plans, joining from Merrill Lynch Wealth Management, where she had been since 2014.

Serving as a senior retirement benefits consultant at Merill Lynch, Carter partnered with non-designated advisers to manage 401(k), defined benefit and defined contribution retirement plans. She provided advisory services for corporate retirement plans, including investment advice and benchmarking, fiduciary consulting, participant advice and engagement, and financial wellness education.

Carter specializes in supporting plans often neglected or in need of an overhaul. She has been named the 2023 and 2024 National Association of Plan Advisors’ Top Plan Advisors Under 40 and is looking to become more involved in advocacy with the American Retirement Association

“Retirement plans to me aren’t about finance, but about people’s lives,” Carter said in a statement. “In Sanctuary, I have found a partner who understands my drive to improve the access to high quality retirement planning and consultation services for my clients and their employees in Eastern North Carolina.”

NewEdge Wealth Adds Veteran Municipal Bond Manager McIntyre to Investment Team

Kevin McIntyre

NewEdge Wealth LLC, a registered investment adviser specializing in servicing the needs of ultra-high-net-worth families, family offices and institutional clients, has appointed Kevin McIntyre as principal and municipal bond portfolio manager.

McIntyre is responsible for the design, construction and implementation of fixed-income and municipal bond strategies across NewEdge Wealth. In addition, he will work closely with advisers to provide custom fixed-income solutions and investment insights.

“Kevin is a remarkable addition to our team,” Cameron Dawson, NewEdge Wealth’s CIO, said in a statement. “His depth of knowledge and expertise in municipal bond portfolio management, coupled with the ability to foster trusted relationships, strongly aligns with our commitment to delivering top-tier investment solutions for our clients.”

With nearly 30 years of experience in municipal bond portfolio management, McIntyre will focus on separately managed accounts. He served as a senior municipal portfolio manager and executive director at UBS Asset Management before joining NewEdge Wealth.

Lincoln Financial Hires Houston Sales Head  

Insurance company Lincoln Financial Distributors Inc. named Nick Verburgt as a regional sales director, reporting to divisional sales manager Vince Rainforth, a spokesperson confirmed.

Previously director of retirement plan consulting at Houston-based Strategic Retirement Partners, Verburgt is responsible for sales coverage in the Houston area.  

The Standard Hires Schaefer as Regional VP for Retirement Plans

Stephen Schaefer

The Standard announced that Stephen Schaefer was hired as regional vice president for retirement plans. He will work with advisers and third-party administrators in California and Nevada.

Schaefer has more than 15 years of experience in the retirement plan and financial industry. He held previous roles as a regional vice president, senior plan consultant, financial adviser and key account manager.

“We’re excited to welcome Stephen to the team,” Brody Geist, divisional vice president of retirement plans at The Standard, said in a statement. “His in-depth knowledge of the business and deep commitment to exceptional service for his advisor partners and customers align strongly with our values. Stephen is a great fit and I’m excited for both him and The Standard.”

Products January 11, 2024

Investment Product and Service Launches

Franklin Templeton, Valkyrie, WisdomTree launch bitcoin ETFs; Prism Benefits officially launches and more.

Reported by

Franklin Templeton, Valkyrie, WisdomTree Launch Bitcoin ETFs

Franklin Templeton launched its first digital assets-backed exchange-traded fund, the Franklin Bitcoin ETF, under the ticker EZBC. The fund is a spot bitcoin ETF available for U.S. investors and seeks to reflect the performance of the price of bitcoin, less the expense of fund operations. It is offered on the Cboe BZX Exchange Inc. and priced at 29 basis points.

In addition, Valkyrie Investments Inc., a specialized digital asset investment management company, is launched the Valkyrie Bitcoin Fund, sponsored by Valkyrie’s subsidiary, Valkyrie Digital Assets LLC. The Valkyrie Bitcoin Fund gives investors “sophisticated but simplified access to the digital commodity without the hassle that comes with accessing bitcoin via other methods,” according to a company statement.

Get more!  Sign up for PLANSPONSOR newsletters.

WisdomTree Inc., an ETF and exchange-traded product sponsor and asset manager, also announced the launch of its bitcoin ETF, the WisdomTree Bitcoin Fund. The WisdomTree Bitcoin Fund’s investment objective is to gain exposure to the price of bitcoin, less expenses and liabilities of the fund’s operations.

The wave of new bitcoin offering comes after the Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday approved applications for a “number of spot bitcoin exchange-traded product shares.” SEC Chairman Gary Gensler, in his statement about the approval of spot bitcoin ETPs, said, “Commission staff is separately completing the review of registration statements for 10 spot bitcoin ETPs simultaneously, which will help create a level playing field for issuers and promote fairness and competition, benefiting investors and the broader market.”

Prism Benefits Officially Launches 

Ryan McDermott and Joshua O’Gara launched Prism Benefits Inc. on January 3. Prism is a public benefits corporation based in Needham, Massachusetts.

The platform deviates from the traditional method of allowing employees to select from non-customized, company-wide benefits offerings. Instead, employees sit down one-on-one with a Prism team member and select the specific benefits’ options that best serve the needs of them and their families. In addition, Prism will bring compliance support and benefits administration solutions to HR and finance professionals.

“Through the vision of Prism, we are developing ways to adapt to the needs of employees and the workforce today,” O’Gara said in a statement. “We bring a nimbleness and a flexibility that larger companies can’t offer. We’re doing this work to promote financial education at a high level, but we’re also here to offer detail-oriented support that employees may need along the way.” 

O’Gara has been working in the financial services industry since 2006 and is currently president and chairman of the board of directors of the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors. McDermott has been working in the industry since 2004 and serves on NAIFA’s board.

ALM’s Judy Diamond Associates Introduces Small Group Markets Database to Insurance Industry

Judy Diamond Associates, a unit of ALM Global, LLC, announced its new small group markets database for employee benefits brokers and insurance carriers.

“This new tool has been a long time coming,” said Eric Ryles, vice president of customer solutions at Judy Diamond Associates, in a statement. “Over my twenty years in the employee benefits prospecting industry, ‘how do I find small groups’ is probably the question I’ve been asked most often. I’m glad to finally have an answer!”

Subscribers of the online platform can access information on active businesses, including contact info for plan decisionmakers, address, telephone number and estimated revenue. Customers can refine their results by filtering for geography, company stability score, employee longevity and estimated years in business.

“The 2-99 employee segment has been difficult to parse for independent brokers, carriers, and others in the industry because they do not file ERISA paperwork,” according to a company statement. “Judy Diamond’s Small Group Markets database uncovers this lucrative hidden market and delivers much needed lead generation support to anyone trying to prospect in the small group market.”

«