Putnam Calls for Income in New Generation of 401(k) Workplace Savings

Putnam Chief Executive Officer Robert Reynolds is once again sounding the call for a new approach to 401(k) investing, inclusive of annuities and other retirement income products. This time, he is asking Washington to create a national insurance charter that will ensure consistent regulation for assured income products.

In concert with this, Reynolds says there needs to be a new regulatory body overseeing these products. Provisionally, he has named this body the Lifetime Income Security Agency.

And much like there is the FDIC to guarantee bank deposits, Reynolds says there needs to be a national industry-funded body to assure that retirement income products deliver on their promise.

He also wants the government to give plan participants compelling tax incentives if they choose assured income streams.

"America faces a retirement challenge that encompasses federal entitlement reform, extending workplace savings coverage to the half of all Americans who have no such access today and taking our defined contribution system to the next level," Reynolds said. "Meeting this challenge, and revitalizing America's retirement savings system for the 21st century, is too big a job for any single firm or industry. We will need to forge new alliances among mutual fund companies, insurance companies, retirement plan sponsors and advisers and government itself."

 

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