Investment Product and Service Launches

Art by Jackson Epstein

Vestwell and Morningstar Create 3(38) Service

Vestwell has launched a service combining 3(38) fiduciary line-up services with target-date model portfolios from Morningstar Investment Management LLC, a provider of discretionary investment management and advisory services. This series of target date model portfolios, built from one of the line-ups created by Morningstar Investment Management, will give Vestwell advisers access to a new set of target-date strategies. 

The service will offer active-passive blended models free of any revenue sharing or referral fees. In addition, the multi-manager lineup gives advisers access to funds from Lord Abbett, State Street, OppenheimerFunds, Cohen & Steers, and Franklin Templeton. These model portfolios, coupled with Morningstar Investment Management’s fiduciary support, will be delivered through Vestwell’s modernized retirement platform. 

“When looking to expand the asset management strategies on our platform, we sought out an investment firm with core capabilities in asset allocation, investment selection, and portfolio construction,” says Aaron Schumm, founder and CEO of Vestwell.  

GSAM Announces First Actively Managed ETF

Goldman Sachs Asset Management (GSAM) has created GSST, an exchange-traded fund (ETF) offering exposure to a broad range of U.S. dollar denominated ultra-short duration bonds, U.S. government securities and other fixed-income securities at a cost of 16 basis points to investors.

GSST is GSAM’s first actively managed ETF and is listed on Cboe BZX Exchange.

“In the current rate environment, investors are increasingly seeking exposure to short-term strategies,” says Michael Crinieri, GSAM’s global head of ETF strategy. “We have constructed GSST to meet this investor demand, constructed with an innovative, diversified mix of government securities and credit, all delivered through the same lower-cost, high-value model that defines our fixed-income Access ETF products.”

GSST is GSAM’s second ultra-short fixed-income ETF after Goldman Sachs Access Treasury 0-1 Year ETF (GBIL), which seeks to track the FTSE US Treasury 0-1 Year Composite Select Index. It will be actively managed by GSAM’s Global Fixed Income team.

GSAM’s complete Access ETF suite includes Goldman Sachs Access Treasury 0-1 Year ETF; Goldman Sachs Access Ultra Short Bond ETF; Goldman Sachs Access Inflation Protected USD Bond ETF; Goldman Sachs Access Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF; and Goldman Sachs Access High Yield Corporate Bond ETF.

Lyxor Americas Launches Hedge Fund Program for Institutional Investors  

Lyxor Asset Management Inc. (Lyxor Americas), an indirect subsidiary of Paris-based Lyxor Asset Management S.A.S. (Lyxor), has announced a new program enabling institutional investors to participate in stand-alone co-investment and selective hedge fund opportunities presented to Lyxor Americas by third-party managers. 

Opportunities available through the program are expected to include high conviction, concentrated, and/or bespoke investments offered outside of a manager’s other funds, according to Lyxor Americas. Investors participating in it can review and invest in individual opportunities arising from Lyxor’s relationships with approximately 100 hedge fund managers. This “opt-in” investment program allows participating investors to evaluate each investment opportunity. Each proposed opportunity is supposed to successfully complete a formal investment, risk and operational due diligence process by Lyxor Americas, prior to being made available through the program.

“Co-investments are playing an increasingly significant role in institutional investors’ pursuit of alpha and absolute returns,” says Andrew Dabinett, CEO of Lyxor Americas Lyxor. “With its 20-year history of managing hedge fund portfolios, Lyxor has built a far-reaching global network of partnerships with managers and we are well positioned to access and evaluate co-investment and bespoke opportunities for our clients in a thorough, timely, and cost-effective manner.”

Sanctuary Adds Solutions Division Platform and Members

Sanctuary Wealth (Sanctuary) has built a new division, Sanctuary OCIO Solutions, an outsourced chief investment officer (OCIO) platform providing advisers, their high-net-worth/ultra-high-net-worth clients, and institutional clients ways to manage investments through day-to-day investment practices, research, and decisionmaking.

According to the company, Sanctuary OCIO Solutions offers services including investment advice, research, execution, and reporting.

“The creation of Sanctuary OCIO Solutions underscores our commitment to serving the investment needs of advisers, their clients, and institutional investors,” says Sanctuary CEO and Founder Jim Dickson. “We now can provide the research, knowledge, investment expertise and fiduciary oversight that otherwise might not be accessible to independent advisers for their high-net-worth clients. Institutional clients, such as colleges and universities, foundations and endowments, and Taft-Hartley funds, can access our skilled resources and attain additional oversight through Sanctuary OCIO Solutions.”

Additionally, James Otley, Jr. has been named managing director of Sanctuary OCIO Solutions and serves as business development leader for the new division. Otley will partner with Sanctuary Wealth’s CIO Greg Hahn to offer expertise in investment management and administrative services.

Otley will also continue to serve his clients through Otley Private Wealth Management, an independent investment advisory firm serving high-net-worth clients and institutions and part of the Sanctuary Wealth network of independent advisory firms. Michele Stiff joins Otley in the new firm as vice president and chief operating officer of Otley Private Wealth Management.

Morningstar Launches Managed Account Platform for Advisers

Morningstar Investment Management LLC has added its new adviser managed accounts platform, aimed an easier process for Registered Investment Advisors (RIA) firms and their advisers to offer a managed accounts solution to retirement plan clients.

This solution is designed so that participants receive personalized advice based on model portfolios aligned with the RIA firm’s investment expertise and philosophies. It can also help the RIA firm generate new business opportunities and allows advisors to offer personalized advice in a scalable manner. The platform will be integrated with multiple recordkeepers to help ensure greater coverage within an adviser’s existing book of business.  

“We believe participants can achieve a better retirement outcome by receiving investment and savings advice that is personalized to their specific situation,” says Brock Johnson, president of global retirement and workplace solutions at Morningstar Investment Management. “By giving advisors and RIA firms the platform and flexibility they need to support a managed accounts offering, we can help even more participants make more informed investing decisions to help achieve the outcomes they seek.”

CAPTRUST Financial Advisors is the first RIA firm to use the new platform, and Schwab Retirement Plan Services will be the first recordkeeper integrated into the service.  

“Personalized, one-on-one investment advice makes a huge difference, and Morningstar Investment Management’s advisor managed accounts platform gives us another way to help affect the outcome for even more participants,” says Scott Matheson, CAPTRUST’s defined contribution practice leader. “The fact that it is recordkeeper agnostic is important to us, too, since we deliver participant advice to retirement plans across dozens of recordkeepers.”