13.12.2019 06.59 GMT+0000

Fee compression affecting retirement plan providers has been well documented. However, it is harder to track efforts by these providers to shift revenue out away from the watchful gaze of plan fiduciaries.

Actions and Reactions

Actions and Reactions

Retirement plan providers are under pressure to reduce fees--and are likely to respond by shifting more focus to non-plan products.

Under Newton’s Third Law, for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. Fee compression for retirement plan providers, such as plan recordkeepers and investment providers, is well documented. However, it is harder to document provider efforts to replace compressed revenue from sources just beyond the scrutiny of (most) plan fiduciaries--through the sale of non-plan products to individuals participating in employer-sponsored plans.