Investing

Investors are finding new avenues to use exchange-traded funds (ETFs), and they want more options for active ETF, smart beta and fixed income products.

Defined contribution plan sponsors should provide education in appropriate ways and at appropriate times to help participants understand not only how target-date funds work, but how to select...

“If they are choosing a passive investment option simply because it is less work for them, this is not in line with the spirit of ERISA,” says Jessica...

Fidelity finds the top concerns for institutional investors are the low-return environment and market volatility. 

A list from Willis Towers Watson gives DB plan sponsors food for thought.

The culture of an investment manager organization can have a strong impact on putting plan sponsor and adviser interests first, research suggests.

Investors are feeling the impact of weak investment returns and the prolonged low-interest-rate environment.

“The interest in ESG and corporate governance issues for investors only looks set to grow given its prevalence amongst Millennials,” says Jessica Ground with Schroders.

More and more institutions, including those with greater than $1 billion in trust assets to invest, have embraced full-discretion OCIO service, according to Cerulli Associates.

The underestimation of human life spans by forecasters and the potentially sharp unanticipated increases in longevity resulting from medical breakthroughs poses a real risk to pension funding levels,...

However, there are considerations about the peripheral risks of offering a custom fund—as a growing handful of DC plan sponsors have already been sued over the performance of...

There are many ESG or impact investment programs available, some of which will outperform and many more that will not.

Forty percent of corporate pension funds surveyed say they would be willing to accept lower returns in order to achieve a positive social impact.

Net outflows among active funds were driven by redemptions in large capitalization strategies, Strategic Insight data shows.

Investment providers that serve retirement plan sponsors see opportunities for outperformance in ESG and SRI programs. 

Cerulli sees robo-advisers as a tool to enhance adviser-client relationships.

Corporate ERISA plans were helped by a significant allocation to high yield, emerging market debt and longer duration investment grade bonds.

ESG investing principals are being implemented by institutional investors in a rich variety of ways, with an increasing emphasis on the “social” and “governance” portion of ESG. 

Morningstar argues the increased savings benefits measured among managed account users are likely to outweigh the costs of such products over TDF pricing. 

Some experts say taking the 12b-1 approach can result in lower net fees, while others call for an end to the method for paying investment provider fees and...