Hot off the Presses

PLAN SPONSOR & PARTICIPANT TOOLS

Nationwide Retirement Plans announced the launch of Retirement Clear Advantage, a retirement plan product featuring fee disclosure and institutional class mutual funds. Clear Advantage provides plan sponsors with an upfront discussion on pricing, which Nationwide says allows each plan to track its performance and make more informed decisions.

Alliance Benefit Group, LLC, a national network of independently owned employee benefit firms, launched a version of SmartPlan 401, an interactive video-based education and enrollment system designed to engage employees.

EPIC Advisors, Inc., will now deliver its suite of products and services to the 403(b) retirement plan market. EPIC says its full-service 403(b) recordkeeping and administration services will provide employers with a single-source solution for all of their retirement plan needs.

Security Benefit pledges compliance with 403(b) regulations by the January 1, 2009, deadline to any school whose contract was received by November 14 through its 403(b) PlanSolutions Quick Start.

Klein Decisions, LLC, offers a proprietary online system designed to help participants successfully save for retirement. The company says its K4 Plan Goals product provides a personalized strategy for participants—a combination of automated inputs, defaults, and patented technology that can be delivered on paper or electronically.

Fidelity introduced a series of new educational resources to help Americans better understand their Social Security options, and how that can have an impact on their retirement income.

The Principal Financial Group added Spanish-language content to its Web site. The company says the content of the option focuses on introducing the company’s products, history, and community involvement to the Spanish-speaking community; providing financial education and calculators; and encouraging visitors to work with a financial adviser.

The Profit Sharing/401k Council of America (PSCA) announced the restructuring and unveiling of its 401k.org Web site, offered as a service to the public to help individuals learn about saving and investing for retirement. This free site includes a simple calculator, easy-to-read explanations of the various aspects of 401(k), and a section on frequently asked questions, according to the PSCA.

ING unveiled planwithease.com, a plan administration service specifically designed to help sponsors of 403(b) plans meet the added responsibilities they face under new IRS regulations. The company says the service helps plan sponsors manage their new role as the primary point of contact for participants initiating retirement plan transactions.

The SPARK Institute released a new version of its “Best Practices for 403(b) Plans Information Sharing—Minimum and Comprehensive Data Elements.” The Data Elements Best Practices document was modified from an earlier version due to a number of complicated and technical questions received from companies that are actively developing systems to follow the best practices, according to the company.

The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America introduced customized Spanish language benefit enrollment kits. Guardian says this latest enhancement complements existing bilingual services such as commu­nications that raise awareness of plan offerings and a toll-free employee benefits hotline available in more than 50 languages.

MassMutual’s Retirement Services Division plans to expand its participant communication and education beyond retirement-related topics. MassMutual has announced that it will launch a suite of new online educational content in the fourth quarter that will include: interactive charts, tutorials, calculators, and seminars that advisers and plan sponsors can use for small group education purposes.

MetLife Resources, a division of MetLife, now has available a 403(b) specimen plan document to help plan sponsors comply with the written plan requirement under the final 403(b) regulations that generally must be met by January 1.

Charles Schwab & Co. Inc. offers online commentary about recent market events from Founder and Chairman Charles R. Schwab. The site (www.schwab.com) features a series of video questions and answers and an open letter to investors.

Still River Retirement Planning Software, Inc., revised its software to support ongoing compliance with new IRS regulations requiring 403(b) plan sponsors to monitor participant loans and hardship withdrawals. According to the company, the updated 403(b) Loan and Hardship Withdrawal Compliance Utility now is compliant with the SPARK 1.02 best practices for 403(b) data sharing.

Mutual of Omaha now offers employers a 401(k) managed account feature through an arrangement with PMFM Inc. The new Manage It For Me feature from 401k Toolbox provides advice and active portfolio management to participants, the company says. Participants receive a personalized retirement strategy through professional account management, including customized portfolio selection and ongoing monitoring.

Lincoln Financial added 401k Toolbox’s Manage It For Me offering as a QDIA solution. 401k Toolbox will provide plan participants with access to software tools available on the Web site and direct telephone access to trained specialists to help with investment advice and financial planning.

Mercer says it can provide clients with a “carbon footprint” analysis of their portfolios, and compare them with chosen benchmarks, such as the FTSE All-Share, S&P 500, or Russell 1000. Mercer will develop the analyses via use of the Style Research Portfolio Analyzer (SRPA) tool that can integrate relevant information from Trucost Plc, an environmental data provider.

Participants enrolled in Securian Retirement 401(k) plans can track their savings progress on their plan statements with the Securian Annual 401(k) Checkup. It calculates any gap in monthly retirement income and compares the estimated monthly income needed after retirement with the estimated monthly income generated by current savings at a hypothetical rate of return. It also offers tips to building retirement plan savings and a calculator.

Mercer launched a new section of its corporate Web site that provides insights and solutions to the challenges posed by the economic environment. “Leading through unprecedented times’ features podcasts with Mercer consultants on a range of HR-related issues, including the implications for employer-provided health benefits, executive remuneration, volatility and pension funding, and employee communications strategies in tough economic times.

Lincoln Financial Group combined its two micro-small market group variable annuity offerings—Lincoln Director and Lincoln American Legacy Retirement—into a workplace retirement plan. The new program, which will keep the name, Lincoln Director, offers an investment lineup that will include more than 80 options, fiduciary support for plan sponsors, accumulation strategies and tools for plan participants, and a distribution option—the i4LIFE Advantage—that provides lifetime income with guarantees.

ADVISER TOOLS

Executor’s Resource launched EstateLogic, an estate and legacy preparation Web offering. According to the company, the product is a secure, Web-based tool that walks clients through the process of organizing, communicating, and archiving the details of their estate and personal legacy. It is designed for individuals to use in collaboration with a financial adviser.

New Frontier, a research and investment advisory firm, partnered with FundQuest to offer exchange-traded fund (ETF) managed account portfolios to financial advisers. New Frontier Global Strategic Model Portfolios will be initially available to more than 35 registered investment adviser (RIA) firms who custody at Pershing. New Frontier says clients will benefit from tools and services for client profiling, portfolio recommendations, portfolio construction, and flexible reporting options including both online snapshots and quarterly performance reporting.

Eaton Vance expanded its Web site to include education for advisers about the effect of taxes on investment returns. The site can be accessed with a password at www.evtaxcenter.com.

Morningstar, Inc., introduced a research module offering coverage of U.S. ETFs, including portfolio holdings and Morningstar analyst commentary. Through the module, Morningstar Principia Exchange-Traded Funds, advisers can screen, sort, and rank the ETF universe based on approximately 200 fields and make comparisons to more than 360 benchmarks, according to Morningstar.

Artio Global Investors Inc. launched a segment of its Web site devoted to financial intermediaries. The site, accessible from www.artioglobal.com, features white papers and other information for advisers, according to the company.

Matrix Financial Solutions, Inc., released an advisory desktop product, RetireTool(k)it. RetireTool(k)it, which will be available through Matrix’s wholly owned subsidiary, MG Advisory Services, is a Web application for end-to-end tasks—from fund selection and monitoring, investment policy statement (IPS) preparation, point-of-sale brochure design, to plan enrollment kit creation. The open-architecture application is for advisers, brokers, and third-party administrators (TPAs).

SunGard’s WealthStation platform has been enhanced with the addition of a financial planning module for financial advisers to use to attract, service, and grow client relationships, the company says. WealthStation’s modules, available as a single process or as an end-to-end solution, include client management, financial planning, investment management, asset allocation, data aggregation, trading and rebalancing, reporting, client access, and compliance.

Broker/dealer Geneos Wealth Management, Inc., enhanced its technology platform for broker/dealers and registered representatives. The latest version of the Web-based application Nexus 2.0 automates many of the tasks associated with an independent financial adviser’s business, including account opening, compliance, and reporting, according to the company.

MFS Investment Management (MFS) completed the formation of a business development office for the defined contribution investment only (DCIO) marketplace. MFS says it has the products, tools, and resources to service the DCIO marketplace, including a variety of investment options available on major investment platforms, access to analytic tools to help provide investment support with analysis and performance attribution for advisers, as well as marketing collateral, white papers, and other business-building programs to help grow and build their retirement business offerings.

Pacific Life unveiled a sales kit designed to help advisers working with business-owner clients use life insurance to close the retirement savings shortfall in defined benefit plans. The company says the kit, aimed at small to mid-size companies, explains the advantages of a Qualified Combo Plan Using Life Insurance, which combines the use of a 401(k) profit-sharing plan with a split-funded defined benefit plan.

Securian says it now offers advisers tools they can use to help clients face their issues with debt and develop a strategy for setting up a steady stream of income in retirement. The program includes several educational pieces—e.g., a presentation for advisers to give to a client or group of clients that builds a case, step by step, for facing debt and dealing with it.

Van Kampen Funds says it is unveiling a program for financial advisers that will provide support for, and education about, target-date funds. One element of this new program examines the language typically used to describe target-date funds and how different word choices can communicate more powerfully the concepts underpinning these investment strategies.

INVESTMENTS

Artio Global Investors Inc. (formerly Julius Baer Americas Inc.) rebranded its suite of U.S.-registered mutual funds. The company said the move is to align the funds with the new corporate name.

Franklin Templeton Investments introduced the Templeton Global Total Return Fund, a multi-sector global bond fund designed to capitalize on fixed-income opportunities around the world. The fund invests primarily in fixed and floating-rate bonds of corporations, governments, and government-related issuers worldwide.

Security Global Investors (SGI) announced the availability of its Small Cap Value (SSUAX) and All Cap Value (SESAX) mutual funds. The Small Cap Value strategy offers institutional and retail investors exposure to a pure small-cap market capitalization style while the All Cap Value strategy provides investors with an unconstrained best ideas value portfolio across the capitalization spectrum.

Invesco Aim Advisors, Inc., approved the reopening of AIM International Small Company Fund. The fund, which went into limited offering in March 2005 and has approximately $317 million in assets under management, reopened to all investors November 3.

Vanguard reopened the Vanguard International Explorer Fund and Vanguard Precious Metals and Mining Fund to new shareholder accounts. Vanguard closed the International Explorer Fund, which focuses on the stocks of small companies based outside the United States, in August 2004. The Precious Metals and Mining Fund invests in the stocks of foreign and U.S. companies engaged in the exploration, mining, and distribution of gold, silver, platinum, diamonds, and other precious metals and minerals. The fund was closed in February 2006.

Ameriprise Financial, Inc., introduced the Active Diversified Portfolios series, professionally managed portfolios designed to help individuals achieve risk-managed growth. Investors can choose from six different risk profiles.

Natixis Global Associates (NGA) added the Vaughan Nelson Value Opportunity Fund (VNVAX) to the Natixis Funds lineup. The fund is a diversified portfolio of mid-cap value stocks managed with an absolute return orientation. Similar to the Vaughan Nelson Small Cap Value Fund, the new fund seeks long-term capital appreciation with an emphasis on absolute return. Both funds pursue a bottom-up investment strategy focused on identifying undervalued stocks.

Van Kampen Funds launched Van Kampen Retirement Strategy Funds, a new series of target-date portfolios, involving a partnership with Russell Investments. The company says the series consists of nine funds with target retirement dates from 2010 to 2050 (in five-year increments) and an In Retirement fund. Each is structured as a fund of funds, investing primarily in a combination of Van Kampen-managed mutual funds and multi-firm managed funds advised by Russell Investments.

INVESTMENT BENCHMARKING

Standard & Poor’s launched the S&P/Citigroup International Treasury Bond Index Series, a benchmark representing developed market treasury bonds, excluding the United States. The indexes include only countries that are classified as being developed markets by the Bank of International Settlements.

The Bank of New York Mellon launched The Bank of New York Mellon GDR Index and 30 global depositary receipt (GDR) subindexes. The Bank of New York Mellon GDR Index comprises all GDRs traded on the London Stock Exchange, serving as benchmarking tools for investors and intermediaries to track the GDR market and to benchmark specific GDR holdings, according to the company.

KLD Research & Analytics, Inc.—a provider of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) research and indexes—and global index provider FTSE have partnered to offer a suite of ESG indexes.

Dow Jones Indexes added Bahrain, China, Egypt, India, Jordan, Kuwait, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Sri Lanka, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates to the Dow Jones Islamic Market World Index and all of its subindexes, including the Dow Jones Islamic Market World Emerging Index and Dow Jones Islamic Market Asia/Pacific Index.

The additions are effective at the start of trading December 22.

ETFs

The PowerShares NextQ Portfolio (PNXQ) has changed its name to the PowerShares NQX Portfolio. Invesco PowerShares Capital Management LLC says that the name change highlights the ticker symbol identification and will allow for synergies in positioning the fund as a complement to the PowerShares QQQ (QQQQ), which is based on the NASDAQ-100 Index.

Expense ratios for 11 domestic PowerShares FTSE RAFI ETF portfolios were lowered to 39 basis points by Invesco PowerShares Capital Management LLC.

Direxion entered the ETF space with the Direxion Shares 3x ETFs. The new ETFs are a group of leveraged bull and bear index funds that seek 300% of the daily performance, or 300% of the inverse of the daily performance (before fees and expenses) of the Russell indexes they benchmark.

Illustration by Torie Leigh