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Focus on Funds: ICI/BrightScope Study Offers Exceptional Insight on 401(k) Plans

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Focus on Funds

ICI/BrightScope Study Offers Exceptional Insight on 401(k) Plans

The February 20, 2015, edition of Focus on Funds discusses key takeaways from ICI and BrightScope’s joint, comprehensive analysis of 401(k) plans.

Transcript

Stephanie Ortbals-Tibbs, ICI Director, Media Relations: Welcome to Focus on Funds, the Investment Company Institute’s weekly roundup of industry news, ICI activities, and research findings.

New insight on 401(k) investing is available in a groundbreaking report done by ICI and BrightScope. I spoke with ICI Senior Economist Sarah Holden about its findings.

Sarah, what really sets this report apart is its size and scope.

Sarah Holden, ICI Senior Director, Retirement and Investor Research: Yes, BrightScope gathered together information on more than 35,000 401(k) plans and we’re able to look at their investment options and their plan design, so it’s a really unique scope of data.

Ortbals-Tibbs: And what are a number of the topline takeaways that we see in this report? How does it break out?

Holden: The key thing we’re seeing is that plan sponsors design their plans to attract and retain quality workers. They do this by making contributions, which encourage people to participate; by offering a wide range of investment options; and generally by investing in lower-cost funds. And they do all of this so that people can build a retirement nest egg.

Ortbals-Tibbs: And so there’s a lot our members can learn from each of these aspects, and we’ll take a closer look at them in the weeks to come?

Holden: Yes, we will.

Ortbals-Tibbs: That’s this week in funds. See you next week.

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