2 Partnerships Expand Plan Accessibility, Geographic Reach

Vestwell Holdings Inc. and M Financial Group announced a partnership on Thursday that will make Vestwell’s retirement platform available to advisers across the M Financial Group’s network of more than 140 member firms.

Meanwhile, retirement service platform provider Strongpoint Partners teamed up with Florida-based plan administration and consulting firm Bates & Co. to bring Strongpoint’s services to Bates clients in Florida.

Vestwell’s offering includes support for pooled employer plans for employers that meet the audit threshold and for group-of-plans structures for smaller, sub-audit-sized clients. In both types, M Financial Asset Management Inc. serves as the 3(38) investment fiduciary. The partnership also expands the use of Vestwell’s 3(16) administrative fiduciary services; payroll integrations; and onboarding and enrollment services.

“This partnership is about creating a more efficient path for advisers and business owners alike,” said Jeff Currie, M Financial’s senior vice president of corporate solutions, in a statement. “The combination of M Financial’s investment fiduciary capabilities and Vestwell’s retirement infrastructure allows us to deliver a streamlined solution that can support employers as they grow, while helping our member firms expand their presence in an important and rapidly evolving market.”

“More businesses than ever are looking for retirement plan options that pool risk and reduce administrative burden as they scale,” said Richard Tatum, Vestwell’s president of workplace savings, in a statement. “What changed is the technology to deliver those structures affordably has finally caught up to the demand.”

In the Strongpoint partnership, Bates & Co.’s team members will remain in their current roles. Bates will contribute its consulting and plan design expertise to Strongpoint’s network.

“Expanding to Florida has been on our roadmap for a while,” said Jack Toner, Strongpoint’s chief development officer, in a statement. “Adding [Bates’] team gives plan sponsors across Florida a local partner backed by a national platform.”