Retirement planning

A top executive with Fidelity urged congressional action to stave off what he described as "a looming retirement crisis," appealing to lawmakers to pressure the Department of Labor to avoid an expansive redefinition of fiduciary responsibilities for advisors, among other things.

“We have found that people in Gen Y not only said they are highly disciplined, they really are more highly disciplined than people in older generations,” Bill Taylor, vice president of financial planning at Northwestern Mutual, said in an interview. “It might be because they’ve seen their parents hurt badly when stocks fell in 2008, because of the decline of defined benefit plans, or just because young people have access to more information today.”

Putnam Investments has added three new DCIO Investment Specialists to bolster its sales effort in the 401(k) market.

Russell Investments has appointed Andrew Scherer as director of defined contribution, intermediary distribution for the firm’s U.S. advisor-sold business, which sells mutual funds and other multi-asset products to DC recordkeeping platforms, retirement plan sponsors and retirement plan advisors.

Delivering easily accessible, multimedia resources that are broken into small packages is key to engaging and educating individuals, according to new research.

Just 37% of baby boomers are confident in their financial preparations for retirement—and that number keeps falling.

Target-date funds have grown phenomenally in the past five years from virtually no assets in 2007 to about $1 trillion today.

Mutual fund shops take heed. PIMCO's 2013 Defined Contribution Consulting Support and Trends Survey sheds light on how consultants are helping their plan sponsor clients design their plans around target-date and retirement income products.

A bout of forgetfulness may be a classic sign of aging, or it could point to more serious health problems, such as Alzheimer’s.

Your IRA Expert answers the question of how the executor of a will can pay off debt with an inherited IRA.

Financial advisors with clients who have been awarded pension rights in a divorce should follow up to see if the proper procedures to claim those rights have been followed; if not, advisors should urge immediate action.

Private-equity firms, the exclusive money managers overseeing $3 trillion worldwide for the wealthiest investors, are discovering a new type of client: ordinary people.

MFS Investment Management has rolled out Class R5 shares for 40 of its US mutual funds. Class R5 shares allow MFS to offer a lower-cost share class option to plan sponsors of—and advisors working with—qualified retirement plans, including 401(k) plans. Class R5 shares, unlike many other share classes, do not pay sub-accounting fees.

When it comes to staying in touch with younger investors, face-to-face or phone contact trumps social media outlets like Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn, according to a new survey from Merrill Lynch Private Banking & Investment Group.

Low-income individuals who use financial advisors reduced the risk of running out of money by up to 12.6 percent, depending on family status and gender.

Investors have major trust issues with their advisors.

New research from PIMCO says that the majority of consultants think plan sponsors should offer their 401(k) plan participants target date or target risk strategies of the active management variety.

When speaking with small business owners, be prepared with specialized knowledge, willingness to coordinate, and the ability to handle emotions.

New legislation means big changes for estate planning. Here's what you need to consider.

Manulife Asset Management has expanded its equity investing capabilities.