More RPAs are choosing to sell, in part to get referrals, especially if they are part of a benefits firm. But being part of a larger firm as an employee is not appealing to all.
Empower has distanced itself from its other competitors; the only one that matters is Fidelity, which is bigger and more profitable because of its ability to cross-sell wealth management services to participants as well as offer proprietary products.
Who deserves to service and monetize the participants? The answer to that is whoever works the hardest, within the limits of the law, in a professional, conflict-free manner.
The case for pooled employer plans is compelling, especially to address the fact that there are 5 million to 6 million companies in the U.S. and just 650,000 defined-contribution plans.
There are three major trends that could make the small and micro DC markets more attractive to retirement plan advisers.
There will be vast differences, but the fundamentals of the business will be the same, as will the importance of strong relationships and brands.
Lack of diversity is a problem for the financial service industry, and especially the DC market, where most advisers are white males. That is also true of industry executives, most of whom went to college in the Northeast or were trained by a provider there.
Anyone who has tried to roll assets out of a DC plan knows how difficult and time-consuming it can be.
The lack of training for retirement committees and plan professionals is appalling, especially in the retail DC market. Many people got their job when someone walked into their office and said, 'Good luck, you’re now in charge of running our retirement plan,' and then walked out.
The Retirement Research Center recently surveyed elite RPAs, half of whom had more than $300 million in DC assets under advisement.
