Compliance May 13, 2010

EFAST2 Adds Signature Option

The Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) has announced that the EFAST2 electronic filing system for Forms 5500 and 5500-SF employee benefit plan annual reports has a new e-signature option.
Reported by

A news release said service providers that manage the filing process for plans can get their own signing credentials and submit the electronic Form 5500 or 5500-SF for the plan.

The service provider must confirm it has specific written authorization from the plan administrator to submit the plan’s electronic filing, and the administrator must manually sign a paper copy of the completed filing. The service provider must attach a PDF copy of the manually signed Form 5500 or 5500-SF as an attachment to the electronic filing submitted to EFAST2.

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Also, the service provider must communicate to the plan administrator any inquiries received from EFAST2, the Department of Labor, the Internal Revenue Service, or the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. regarding the filing, and inform the plan administrator that, by electing to use this option, the image of the plan administrator’s manual signature will be included with the rest of the annual return/report posted on the Internet.

The additional e-signature option will be available in the government-sponsored IFILE application beginning May 13.  Filers using EFAST2 approved software to complete and file the Form 5500 or Form 5500-SF should contact their software vendors for information regarding availability of this new e-signature option as part of their software.

Effective Jan. 1, retirement and welfare plans required to file an annual Form 5500 or 5500-SF must file electronically using the department’s new EFAST2 electronic filing system.

More information is available at www.efast.dol.gov. 

Products May 13, 2010

Fidelity Launches Corporate Bond Fund

Fidelity Investments announced the launch of the Fidelity Corporate Bond Fund with retail and adviser shares and the addition of an adviser class to the Fidelity Real Estate Income Fund. 
Reported by

Fidelity said the Fidelity Corporate Bond Fund will seek to provide a high level of current income by normally investing at least 80% of assets in investment-grade corporate bonds and other corporate debt securities, as well as repurchase agreements for those securities. The fund will compare its performance to the Barclays Capital U.S. Credit Bond Index, a market value-weighted index of investment-grade, corporate fixed-rate issues with maturities of one year or more. The fund is co-managed by David Prothro and Michael Plage.      

The Fidelity Real Estate Income Fund Fidelity now has an Advisor share classes (class A, C, T, and Institutional), which will be offered through financial advisers at institutions such as brokerage firms, banks, and insurance companies. The fund is managed by Mark P. Snyderman.

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The investment objectives and strategies of Fidelity Advisor Real Estate Income Fund are the same as the existing Fidelity retail fund, seeking higher than average income and capital growth by normally investing primarily in preferred and common stocks of Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs); debt securities of real estate entities; and commercial and other mortgage-backed securities, with an emphasis on lower‐quality debt securities.   

   

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