Deals & People August 29, 2007

Schwab Taps Cox as Chief Operating Officer of Corporate Services

Charles Schwab has announced the hiring of Tony Cox, a new senior executive to help lead the Schwab Corporate&Retirement Services division.
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Cox will be in charge of various business-to-business enterprises at Schwab, including Schwab’s investment-only sales and mutual fund clearing businesses, and will lead the divisions that provide companies with corporate brokerage and stock plan services. He will be joining the firm as senior vice president and chief operating officer of corporate services, reporting to Jim McCool.

Cox comes to Schwab with more than 26 years of experience in the industry. He was previously with INVESCO, Inc., and had been there since 1986. He was most recently the head of North American distribution and responsible for leading institutional sales, marketing and relationship management.

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His prior positions with INVESCO include serving as head of the financial institutions group and as executive vice president of INVESCO Retirement, Inc.

Products August 29, 2007

MassMutual to Add Fiduciary Warranty to DC Offering

MassMutual's Retirement Services Division will introduce a Fiduciary Warranty, available in the fourth quarter of 2007, to qualifying plans that include investment options available through MassMutual's Smart Architecture Investment Program.
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The warranty can help protect plan fiduciaries if there is a legal judgment that results in damages attributable to a breach in the warranty, the firm said, in a press release. Assurances provided by the warranty include:

  • independent certification that Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) standards of fiduciary prudence have been applied to investment identification, screening and monitoring,
  • independent certification that investment options under MassMutual’s Smart Architecture Investment Program provide a suitable basis for plan participants to construct well-diversified investment portfolios for retirement, and
  • investment options made available include balanced and target date investments that meet the Department of Labor’s proposed requirements for Qualified Default Investment Alternatives (QDIA).

Underpinning MassMutual’s Fiduciary Warranty will be a separate, independent third-party certification program that will also launch early in the fourth quarter, the announcement said.

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The certification will be conducted annually and will focus on MassMutual’s investment identification, screening and monitoring process, which uses quantitative and qualitative factors. Evaluation criteria will include investment performance, style consistency, manager tenure, investment philosophy, and expenses.

Additional information about MassMutual’s third-party certification program and terms and conditions of the Fiduciary Warranty will be released in the fall. MassMutual’s Web site is www.massmutual.com.

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