Products June 1, 2023

Mariner Announces Financial Wellness Platform Following Spring Acquisition

The wealth manager will now provide employers with a wellness platform that connects back to their wealth adviser services. 

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Mariner Wealth Advisors announced Wednesday its January acquisition of Spring, a financial wellness benefits provider, and the launch of Mariner Financial Wellness to provide holistic financial guidance in addition to retirement planning. 

The rebranded entity includes an online portal that offers customized educational content, budgeting tools, goal-setting and other resources, according to the announcement. Individuals can find personalized financial wellness coaching from a licensed professional. Additionally, businesses are able to see data-driven insights drawn from employees’ financial concerns, showing results such as declining debt and increasing savings, according to Overland Park, Kansas-based Mariner Wealth Advisors.  

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The financial wellness tool will be provided directly to employees from client businesses and will not involve advisers from the Mariner team in terms of the advice offering, a spokesperson from Mariner said by email. The service will, however, pair with the firm’s retirement plan solutions and wealth advice for executives to “not only help participants save for their future retirement, but then provide them one-on-one, holistic wealth advice too,” according to the spokesperson.  

“[Mariner Financial Wellness] pairs nicely with a company’s 401(k) initiative to create, manage and expand their employer-sponsored 401(k) plan,” the spokesperson wrote. “In our experience, we have found that employees who participate in their company’s 401(k) also want wealth advice to ensure they are planning for retirement in a way that will help them reach their goals.” 

The offering comes amid a push in the retirement industry to connect with participants through financial wellness offerings from advisory firms, as well as recordkeepers. On Wednesday, Smart USA Co., a retirement financial technology firm, acquired ProManage LLC, an independent financial wellness services provider that offers managed accounts and other personalized retirement solutions to plan sponsors and plan participants. 

The new Mariner Financial Wellness will be available immediately to companies already receiving support on their employer-sponsored 401(k) plans from Mariner Wealth Advisors’ retirement plan solutions team, according to the firm. The deal with Chicago-based Spring, which closed in January 2023, is the first of its kind for Mariner Wealth Advisors. 

“The integration of Spring will greatly complement our current retirement service offerings and will allow us to sustain that impact by making financial advice more accessible to employees across the country,” Marty Bicknell, CEO and president of Mariner Wealth Advisors, said in a statement. 

Spring was founded in 2015 by former CEO Joe Holberg, who continues at Mariner Wealth Advisors as the managing director overseeing operations of Mariner Financial Wellness. 

“Throughout the entire journey from the foundation of Holberg Financial in 2015, to its rebrand as Spring in 2021, and now to this next phase with Mariner Wealth Advisors, I have relentlessly focused on building and enhancing a platform that improves employees’ financial education and wellness,” Holberg said in a statement. “I’m thankful for the businesses that have been on this journey with us, and I am excited about the opportunities we will be able to share with them now that we are part of Mariner Wealth Advisors.” 

Products June 1, 2023

Investment Product and Service Launches

Orion client portal connects with Redtail CRM; Thrivent adds new Multi-Year Guarantee Annuity; VIU by Hub launches mobile app and enhanced digital wallet; and more.

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Orion Client Portal Connects With Redtail CRM  

Orion Advisor Solutions, which provides an all-in-one adviser and client solutions platform, announced it has incorporated Orion’s client portal within Redtail CRM, complete with a mobile app.  

Orion’s client portal is now fused within Redtail CRM, eliminating cumbersome manual data entry and allowing clients to manage their wealth and collaborate with their financial adviser with more ease, according to an announcement.

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“We are excited to roll out the industry’s first CRM with a connected client portal, made possible by our acquisition and integration of Redtail Technology,” said Eric Clarke, Orion’s founder and CEO, in a statement. “This is something no other CRM provides and will vastly improve the client experience and deepen relationships between advisors and their clients.” 

Thrivent Adds New Multi-Year Guarantee Annuity  

Thrivent, a diversified financial services organization, announced the launch of its Multi-Year Guarantee Annuity product solution.  

The deferred fixed annuity gives Thrivent clients a flexible solution for the current interest rate environment. It offers multiple guaranteed fixed-rate options along with the features and tax benefits of a traditional annuity. 

“We know that MYGA solutions are especially attractive as more clients consider fixed annuity solutions during this higher interest rate environment,” said Mike DeKoning, Thrivent’s senior vice president of insurance and wealth management solutions. “Our MYGA solution is easy to understand, provides certainty to clients in an uncertain time and is backed by the financial strength and stability of Thrivent.”  

VIU by Hub Announces Launch of Mobile App and Enhanced Digital Wallet 

VIU by Hub, a digital insurance brokerage platform, announced a new mobile app and enhanced digital wallet.  

With VIU’s mobile app and enhanced digital wallet, consumers can navigate personal insurance policies across auto, home, condo, renters, life and pet. Consumers, even if they are not VIU customers, can also import existing policies from various carriers across 20 types of insurance. 

“Our enhanced digital wallet and new mobile app allow consumers to view their coverage holistically, regardless of whether they obtained it through us, and receive impartial advice on how best to move forward when it comes time to renew,” said Bryan Davis, executive vice president and head of VIU, in a statement. 

Family First Life Introduces Sales Conference Experience 

Family First Life announced a summer sales conference kicking off on June 1, with events in 16 locations, including cities in Georgia and Florida.  

The training will center on life insurance sales for both new and experienced agents. Key training will focus on in-home sales, hybrid sales, telesales, annuities and indexed universal life. The conference will also focus on annuity writers for the company’s FFL Simple Retirement Solutions branch.  

“Our Summer Sales Conference is a great experience for agents to receive customized life insurance training,” said Shawn Meaike, founder and president of Family First Life, in a statement. 

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