Transamerica Unveils 401(k) Plan for Smaller Employers

The newly released Transamerica FastTrack Retirement Plan seeks to deliver down market the participant support services more commonly available for large and mega-sized plans.

Transamerica says the base of the FastTrack program is the delivery of clear savings strategies and personalized online progress reports for defined contribution (DC) retirement plan participants. According to the firm, employers can take advantage of the new retirement plan program starting with a commitment of $50,000 in first-year deposits or plan assets.

The plan offers a pre-selected menu of diversified investment choices; a service model that includes third-party administrators for efficient and expert compliance support; and fiduciary protection offered by dedicated Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) section 3(21) fiduciary service from Mesirow Financial Investment Management, Inc.

Stig Nybo, president of U.S. retirement strategy for Transamerica, notes that larger companies are more likely to have established retirement programs for their employees, “but that benefit is not as certain for employees of smaller companies.”

“FastTrack is designed specifically for small companies that want to provide a quality retirement program for their employees,” Nybo explains. “When we designed this retirement plan for smaller companies, we looked at why these companies don’t choose to offer retirement plans. Smaller employers want a cost-effective retirement benefit that will be easier to administer while affording them some fiduciary protection.”

The plan administration model includes expertise and day-to-day assistance from local third-party administrators, Nybo adds, along with easy enrollment for employees and automated plan adoption features.

More information is available at www.transamerica.com.