401(k)

WisdomTree Investments, an exchange-traded fund firm started nine months ago, is gearing up to enter the retirement market. The New York firm has assets of $3.2 billion in its 36 ETFs, and it plans to make the funds available to the 401(k) marketplace shortly, said Al Shemtob, its director of retirement services.

The Bush administration pledged last week to improve fee disclosure in 401(k)s. The Department of Labor's Employee Benefits Security Administration is now accepting ideas on how to do so from the public and the investment management industry. The deadline for comments is July 24.

BOSTON-Retirement isn't always Adirondack chairs and seaside views, even for employees who do participate in company-sponsored defined contribution plans. Not even auto enrollment at 6% with a full company match can solve the retirement crisis.

Critics of 401(k) plans say they have failed the nation's workers because they don't equip them with financial advice. Although the Pension Protection Act prescribes giving guidance, it is vague on what it should constitute and, therefore, hasn't prompted many plan sponsors or administrators to provide such assistance. Without clear rules, they are afraid of fiduciary liability.

Critics of 401(k) plans say they have failed the nation's workers because they don't equip them with financial advice. Although the Pension Protection Act prescribes giving guidance, it is vague on what it should constitute and, therefore, hasn't prompted many plan sponsors or administrators to provide such assistance. Without clear rules, they are afraid of fiduciary liability.

A bill introduced in the House of Representatives would permit employers to offer a hybrid defined benefit plan and defined contribution plan with employees receiving a single statement.

With so many surveys reiterating Americans' lack of preparedness for retirement, it's certainly good news that assets in 401(k) plans are finally growing again. However, that's primarily because the stock market performed so well in 2003, not because employers or investors are committing more money.

Participants in 401(k) plans saw their account balances grow by more than 29% last year, evidence that despite a difficult bear market in previous years, investors are still turning to the vehicle as an effective way to save over the long-term. This is according to a recent study released by the Investment Company Institute and the Employee Benefit Research Institute.

Participants in Manulife USA lifecycle funds have reaped higher returns on their investment in the last five years than do-it-yourself asset allocations, a recent survey conducted by investment consulting firm Burgess + Associates shows.

Mounting evidence shows education can indeed help employees make better decisions to build retirement savings, including a recent survey by the TIAA-CREF Institute and North Carolina State University (NCSU).

The path to retirement can be a long haul, so author David Shapiro recommends using GORP: goal-oriented retirement planning. The admittedly cutesy acronym does not diminish the gravity of Shapiro's topic, funding retirement for the millions of American Baby Boomers who have not yet saved enough.

Employees of maligned fund giant Putnam Investments tiptoed around company procedures in the area of expense payments, several Putnam funds admitted in a series of disclosures to shareholders.

MIAMI -- With Baby Boomers turning age 50 at a rate of 12,000 a day, meeting the needs of mutual fund investors has forced investment advisors to redefine retirement. That's one person every eight seconds for those scoring at home.

It's not every day one encounters a company that's content to be No. 2. But that's exactly the business plan of Principal Retirement & Investor Services. While Principal serves three million investors in 40,000 employer plans, most of those plans are at companies with 1,000 workers or less.

There are many laws that hold parents responsible for the willful misconduct of their children, and now it looks like Marsh & McLennan Cos. (MMC) may have to face the music for its lack of oversight of its Putnam Investments unit.

The downward pressure on 401(k) and other retirement plan balances over the past few years will mean problems for employers - but especially for the millions of workers who are ill-prepared to fund their retirement.

The 529 college savings plan has yet to catch America's attention the way many providers would have hoped. While it is still early in the product's lifespan, it has struggled with profitability issues, low awareness levels among average investors, and potentially crushing legislative barriers.

Employers expanded the number of 401(k) plans in the nation by 4% in 2002, according to the National Defined Contribution Council (NDCC) and the Spectrem Group.

Finances and health insurance are on the minds of Baby Boomers, as 36% of them say they think about their retirement savings nearly every day, according to a recent survey by Pulte Homes.

When it was adopted by Congress, "catch-up" seemed like a surefire attraction for older workers.