Deals & People August 20, 2024

Recordkeepers Ascensus, July Make Divisional Hires

Ascensus hires new nonqualified plan head from MassMutual; July hires national sales lead and promotes former sales director to lead third-party partner services.

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Ascensus LLC and July Business Services made divisional head moves Tuesday for business lines including nonqualified retirement plans, recordkeeper business sales and third-party administrator partner services.

Ascensus, a provider of tax-advantaged solutions including qualified, nonqualified, TPA and 529 and ABLE programs, hired Michael Dunn as president of enterprise solutions.

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In the role, which he starts September 4, Dunn will oversee unbundled and outsourced nonqualified retirement plan administration services and other solutions, including corporate- and bank-owned life insurance consulting and administration, as well as fiduciary and total rewards consulting services. Dunn will report to Nick Good, president of Ascensus, and be part of the company’s executive operating committee.

Michael Dunn

Dunn joins Ascensus from Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co., where he was most recently head of institutional insurance after a nearly 20-year career in various leadership positions. He brings experience in the institutional insurance markets, including the corporate- and bank-owned life insurance segments, which Ascensus notes are key to its “strategic offerings” in the enterprise solutions business.

Dunn succeeds Kurt Laning, who joined Ascensus in 2022 through a merger with Newport and retired earlier this year.

Ascensus has more than $760 billion in assets under administration across its client accounts as of the end of 2023.

July Hires National Sales Head, Promotes VP to TPA Partner Services

July Business Services, a 401(k) plan services provider for small to mid-sized employers, hired Bill Riccio as vice president of sales, taking over Adam Barker’s role leading its national sales team.

Barker, meanwhile, is being promoted to vice president of third-party administrator partner services, according to the firm.

Riccio joins from CUNA Mutual Group, where he was director of national sales and gained experience in TPA business development and retirement plan consulting. Riccio will work on fostering adviser relationships and accelerating company growth.

Barker has been with July for 18 years, including roles in which he built up outsourced staffing solutions for TPAs, developed key TPA and institutional relationships and expanded the national sales team.

As vice president of TPA partner services, his team will help partners “reduce operating costs, enhance quality, and streamline delivery times,” according to the announcement.

“We are delighted to have Bill Riccio join JULY as our VP of Sales during a time in which JULY has experienced substantial growth,” said Blake Willis, July’s chief operating officer, in a statement. “Bill’s exceptional reputation and experience will provide strength to the execution of our sales strategies to further support advisors in growing their qualified plan business.”

July services more than 8,500 401(k), cash balance, defined benefit and other retirement plans. It also provides white label and co-branded support for other organizations.

Products & Services August 20, 2024

Voya Tops $100B In Multiple Employer Assets

Announcement comes shortly after Voya bulked up its MEP sales team.

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Voya Financial Inc. has surpassed $100 billion in assets across its multiple employer solutions, which includes multiple employer plans, pooled employer plans, employer aggregation programs and other customized solutions. The figure marks a 15% increase in total assets compared with the same period last year, as the firm leans into pooled plan offerings.

The announcement comes a few months after Voya announced it was expanding its team with newly created positions aimed at supporting MEP sales growth. These roles are focused on facilitating the development of new solutions and integrating adopting employers into existing ones for both advisers and plan sponsors.

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“We see this marketplace continuing to grow, and our experience, breadth, and depth make Voya well-positioned to continue to capture a large share,” said Ginger Brennan, a senior vice president and head of ABA retirement funds and multiple employer solutions at Voya Financial, in a statement.

Voya noted that it has seen growth within its wealth solutions business in part due to pooled plans, with 34% of employer-sponsored defined contribution plans now participating in a multiple employer plan solution.

PEPs are the pooled plan newcomers, having been created by the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act of 2019.

Last year, Voya announced its role as the recordkeeper for the first 403(b) pooled employer plans, authorized via the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022. This plan provides a pooled option for IRS-designated 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations and health-care-related entities, expanding retirement plan access for employees in these sectors.

According to PLANSPONSOR’s 2024 Recordkeeping Survey, Voya Financial has the most assets in pooled employer plans with $2.02 billion, followed by Principal Financial Group with $1.7 billion and Transamerica with $1.58 billion. PLANSPONSOR, like PLANADVISER, is owned by ISS STOXX.

In the multiple employer plan category, Transamerica ranked first with $20.145 billion in assets, ahead of Principal Financial Group at $17.72 billion and Voya at $13.51 billion.

Voya ranked second among recordkeepers by pooled employer or multiple employer 401(k) participants. Principal Financial Group led the ranking with 594,756 participants, followed by Voya Financial with 261,962 and Empower with 248,355.

Voya did not immediately provide a breakdown of the $100 billion in assets. PLANSPONSOR does not track employer aggregation programs and customized solutions that would make up the remainder of the assets.

“We look forward to the opportunities ahead as we continue to focus on executing our strategy and supporting retirement plan sponsors and advisers in guiding employees toward solutions that foster greater outcomes for all,” said Brennan in the announcement.

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