Retirement planning

While the market may have recovered significantly in the second half of the year, many investors’ portfolios are back to 1999 levels, resulting in a “lost decade” of investing, AARP Financial said.

The Insured Retirement Institute is applauding the confirmation from Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Mary Schapiro that her staff is developing a variable annuity summary prospectus. IRI has long called for—and officially petitioned—the SEC to develop such a document to advance the interests of the investing public, and to reduce the burden placed on its members, which includes insurers, to produce lengthy documents that consumers traditionally ignore because of their complexity.

U.S. Senators Jeff Bingaman (D-NM), Johnny Isakson (R-GA) and Herb Kohl (D-WI) have introduced a bill aimed at helping Americans save enough so that they will not be in danger of outliving their retirement savings.

The House’s decision to extend the current estate tax rate did not come as a surprise to industry observers, who never believed the government would allow the tax to expire altogether and give up the much needed revenue.

OppenheimerFunds Retirement Services announced new resources Wednesday to help 401(k) plan participants, sponsors and advisers navigate difficult market cycles and a constantly evolving marketplace.

Between the market rally and 401(k) investors’ steady contributions, balances are higher than what they were before the financial crisis hit, according to a Vanguard report, “Recovery in 401(k) Balances,” based on an analysis of the 1.7 million investors that Vanguard serves. What’s more, despite the intense scrutiny on target-date funds, some of which dramatically lagged their benchmarks in 2008, portfolios invested solely in target-date funds did better than others.

European private equity firm Permira has acquired a financial services firm devoted to retirement preparedness, Just Retirement, for $374 million. This marks Permira’s first financial services investment since setting up a sector team devoted to the industry last year.

Fidelity Investments is offering its Fidelity Personal Retirement Annuity on the platform of managed accounts provider FundQuest. Thus, the low-cost variable annuity will be available to investors through fee-based advisers, marking the first time Fidelity has worked with a turnkey asset management firm.

Lincoln Financial Group has launched the Lincoln MYGuarantee Plus single premium deferred fixed annuity. It is available for qualified plans (IRA and Roth IRA) through partner firms and the Lincoln financial network.

Despite the financial services industry's downsizing, New York Life Investments is building up a sales force to target the defined contribution market.

PALM BEACH, Fla. - Almost a year after new rules governing 403(b) retirement plans for educational and non-profit workers were supposed to take effect, plan sponsors, vendors and third-party administrators are still struggling to comprehend the myriad of changes.

PALM BEACH, Fla. - Most 401(k) and other defined contribution plan administrators and sponsors like the automatic enrollment feature in the retirement savings plans they manage because it gets more people saving earlier, but the involuntary nature of these plans does not diminish the burdens they place on administrators to run them.

Financial services firms are urging Congress to adopt retirement savings reforms in the next few years and are readying products that could profit from them.

Although target-date funds could possibly be better designed and perhaps have less disparity between their equity exposure and glidepaths, they are not to be held responsible for the current retirement shortfall many people are now facing, according to Manning & Napier. Rather, no mutual fund could adequately shield investors from the near collapse of the U.S. financial system, according to the firm.

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.

With investors and employers alike still shaken by retirement plan losses, despite the market's rebound since March, Prudential Financial is hoping a bundled package of products inclusive of guaranteed retirement income can help it draw assets from a skeptical marketplace.

John Hancock has launched a microsite and accompanying advertisements addressing the many looming, difficult questions near-retirees have, such as how to leave a legacy, how best to work with a financial adviser, how to repair a beaten-down portfolio and how to juggle multiple financial goals including saving for retirement, taking care of aging parents and saving for a child’s education.

Plan sponsors are becoming more aggressive about helping their workers save for retirement, and even investment advice is now offered, Hewitt Associates found in a survey of 300 mid- and large-sized companies.

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.

Some say that character is revealed by what you do when no one is looking. This may be true for an individual, but for leaders within organizations, I contend that perhaps character is revealed by what you do when everyone is looking. When the heat is on. When challenges abound. When resources are scarce, competition is fierce, and failure is a possibility.