Qualified Plans Industry

News

Defined Benefit Plans Outperform 401(k) Plans

Over a 12-year period, defined benefit plans outperformed defined contribution plans by nearly 14%, according to Watson Wyatt Worldwide.

Public Pensions Defend Role In Letter To Congress

Pension plans have set aside roughly $3 trillion in assets to pay for future benefits, says the National Association of State Retirement Administrators.

Retirement Un-Preparedness is a Global Problem, MetLife Survey Shows

Nearly half of U.S. employees and millions of workers abroad have not taken steps to determine their income needs in retirement.

FINRA Warns About 401(k) Debit Cards

The organization warns that the “tempting convenience” of the cards can harm the card user’s future retirement security.

Lincoln Financial Launches 403(b) Tool

The Lincoln 403(b)e SURE Advantage will help plan sponsors meet the administrative burdens of next year's new IRS regulations.

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Articles

Annuities Remain Best Bet For Retirees

Outside of a defined benefit plan, traditional life annuities issued by insurance companies are the best ways to reduce longevity risk for women. Yet few retirees purchase them, according to a recent report entitled, 'Evaluation of Approaches To Reducing Women's Longevity Risk.' The report, by Beverly Orth of Mercer Human Resource Consulting, confirms the conventional wisdom that variable annuities, though popular as tax-deferral vehicles, are almost never annuitized. She attributes that to a lack of education about annuities and the media's negative portrayal of them.

A Crisis with a Gender Bias

The great open secret of the Baby Boomers' retirement crisis is that, if left unaddressed, the impact of the predicted shortfall of retirement income will weigh much more heavily on women than on men.

Longevity Insurance Refuses To Die

Americans just wont buy income annuities, say the variable annuity marketers. But the diehard fans of life-contingent income annuities say: Baloney.

The Big Un-Easy

This spring, four major insurers and a global asset manager jumped into the 401(k) market by offering group annuities that provide guaranteed lifetime withdrawal benefits.

New Product Issue

The idea of taking income tools out of the annuity context and applying them in new markets is the order of the day.

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