Products December 5, 2001

CONNECTED – SunGard Looks At Advice, Intra-Day Trading for 401(k)s

May 24, 2000 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Plan participants could soon have the ability to be intra-day traders, SunGard Employee Benefit Systems President David Kennedy told PLANSPONSOR.com.
Reported by

Direct Connections

Kennedy noted that SunGard is currently working to enhance and expand current levels of service integration, leveraging “straight-through” processing that could offer real-time participant transfers.

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Already available for company stock and through self-directed brokerage accounts, the nation’s largest recordkeeping vendor says it is considering a product comprised of exchange-traded funds (ETFs), which operate like a mutual fund, but are priced and traded throughout the day.

More direct

Previously, SunGard had to go back through the trustee/custodian provider to initiate a trade and wait for a confirmation of the sales/acquisition price. Today SunGard offers a more direct route through its SunGard Transaction Network. Nearly 70% of NASDAQ trades currently flow through the SunGard Transaction Network, which includes:

  • the BRASS order management system
  • Omni Plus and ES
  • Portfolio One
  • BNET
  • the BRUT electronic communications network (ECN)

Cris Conde, president and chief operating officer of SunGard, stated “With the SunGard Transaction Network, our goal is simple: to enable our clients to initiate transactions on any exchange or market, from any order management system, through any device, any time, anywhere in real-time.”

Conde noted on Monday that “Our vision is T+0.com real-time, web-enabled, straight-through processing,” according to Business Wire.

SunGard’s mutual fund trading system, EXPEDITER, has reportedly propelled the SunGard Transaction Network to what is believed to be the third largest mutual fund network in the U.S. EXPEDITER now offers a direct connection to more than 190 mutual fund families, and over 4,500 funds.

Connection Directions

SunGard Employee Benefit Systems is also considering the introduction of an advice or “near-advice” product through a SunGard risk management subsidiary that could be offered directly, or private-labeled by service providers.

“Brand names are meaningless to individual participants when it comes to advice,” Kennedy noted. “They’re just looking for some help.” The product could be on the market by the end of this year.

– Nevin Adams      editors@plansponsor.com

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