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Nonstarter to Widespread Adoption?

Numerous factors are converging to increase interest and product development in in-plan

guaranteed income options. The driving factor behind the shift in sentiment toward

guaranteed income solutions has been a concerted effort by Congress to help ensure that

Americans are better prepared for retirement. As a result of this legislative call-to-action, a

significant amount of product development has been occurring across the industry.

In this Issue Brief, we lay out the various pieces of legislation that are changing the landscape for ​employer-sponsored plans in general, and guaranteed income, particularly. We also delve into some of ​the products that have been introduced to provide retirees with a steady stream of guaranteed income ​and examine the differences among them. Finally, we discuss the challenges that remain in trying to ​increase the adoption of guaranteed income products by plan sponsors and participants.

A Legislative United Front

In a rare area of bipartisan consensus, Congress sees an urgent need to expand access to workplace ​retirement plans, increase the savings workers can accumulate in workplace plans, and shift their

attention to the level of income their assets can generate in retirement. As a result, a series of passed and ​pending legislative initiatives are coming together to transition the employer-based retirement system in

a way that makes in-plan guarantees a much more viable option.

The first piece of legislation to address shortcomings in the retirement system was the Setting Every ​Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act (i.e., the SECURE Act). Signed into law December 2019, ​the SECURE Act creates a safe harbor from liability for employers if the annuity insurer becomes unable to ​honor the contract, given that the employer performs adequate due diligence when initially choosing an ​insurer. The legislation also allows for portability of in-plan annuities from one employer plan to another ​or to an IRA.

Never Say Never

For the last 20 years, defined contribution (DC) plans have been one distribution venue in

which mutual funds have been insulated from the competitive onslaught of exchanged-

traded funds (ETFs). However, changing industry dynamics could earn ETFs a place

alongside mutual funds in DC plan menus. In this Issue Brief, we explore why ETFs have

largely been shut out of the DC plan marketplace, and what changes are occurring that

could finally make them a more prevalent option in DC plan menus.

Despite their proliferation in all other areas of the investment industry, the DC plan market has largely been off- ​limits to ETFs. While the topic of ETF use in DC plans has surfaced several times over the past two decades, it has ​never really gained steam, as the following three primary arguments have quickly stifled momentum.

1. ETFs are unnecessary, as the unique benefits of ETFs over mutual funds, namely intraday trading and tax

efficiency, are of little or no value given the long-term nature and tax-advantaged status of DC plan

retirement accounts.

2. ETFs are unfeasible in the DC plan market because of their inability to be bought in fractional quantities,

unlike mutual funds, which can be purchased in a thousandth of a share.

3. Because ETFs trade on an exchange, each purchase incurs a commission, making ETFs a cost-prohibitive

alternative to mutual funds.

The veracity of these three arguments has led to the conclusion that the effort and cost required to offer ETFs

through DC plans isn’t worth any benefits their inclusion would provide.

False Starts

This is not to say that attempts to bring ETFs into the DC plan fray have not been made over the years. ETFs can be ​purchased through the brokerage windows that about a third to 40% of DC plans make available to their ​participants. While the prevalence of brokerage windows may sound like a promising avenue through which to ​attract ETF flows, only about 3% of participants use them. In other words, brokerage windows are not a viable ​source for attracting meaningful ETF flows in the DC plan market.

Copyright © 2020 by FUSE Research Network, LLC.

Not to be duplicated or distributed. Reproduction in whole or part in any media is prohibited ​except by permission.

Just as in physical locations, providers of products or services must ensure that the

communications they provide over the Internet comply with the Americans with

Disabilities Act (ADA). For digital marketers as asset management firms, this can be a

particularly complex endeavor, as the growing amount of content, as well as online and

mobile tools, converge with not-always straightforward compliance guidelines and partner

expectations.

In this Issue Brief, we provide a summary of the directive and then discuss how compliance is evolving specifically in the asset management industry.

Key Findings:

• Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) continue to evolve. In October, the World Wide

Web Consortium (W3C) released WCAG 2.2.

• Over the last five years, several large asset managers and distributors have been sued by disabled

plaintiffs, and the risk is growing with the rise in “tester plaintiff” cases.

• Many service platforms exist to help firms achieve compliance, which range from platforms that

allow firms to upload documents, which are then converted to ADA-compliant versions, to

providers that specialize in asset management communications and can implement

comprehensive programs.

• Short-term challenges related to ADA compliance that asset managers face include the Tailored

Shareholder Reporting Rule and the upcoming requirement being implemented by a distributor.

• ADA website compliance has moved from a goal to a necessity. To date, the best way to achieve

compliance is to meet the standards set in WCAG 2.2, conformance level AA.

Copyright © 2023 by FUSE Research Network, LLC.

Not to be duplicated or distributed. Reproduction in whole or part in any media is prohibited ​except by permission.