Private equity is knocking on the 401k door again as a designated investment alternative. Does expanded access mean expanded fiduciary risk?
Private equity inside a daily-valued, participant-directed plan introduces structural tension. Illiquid assets must coexist with participant liquidity expectations. Valuations must be estimated where markets do not exist. And governance must bridge that gap without introducing bias or delay.
The 401k fiduciary rule is gone again. The risk is not. In this regulatory limbo, plan sponsors face more exposure, not less.
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ERISA meaningful benchmark debate heads to Supreme Court just as private equity pushes deeper into 401k plans. Are committees ready?
Private equity investments raise a second layer of fiduciary difficulty because they are not simply harder to compare. They are also harder to value, harder to redeem, and harder to explain to participants who may assume daily-priced plan options operate under familiar public-market rules.
Even with DOL support, 401k forfeiture practices are facing a new wave of aggressive litigation. Is your plan exposed?
Ongoing forfeiture lawsuits involving major plans are reshaping how courts evaluate fiduciary oversight. Sponsors who rely on routine processes may discover that governance gaps create legal exposure for committees and financial harm for participants.
Recent court rulings suggest ‘methodical management’ may trigger liability. Is your 401k fiduciary compliance a solid defense or illusion?
Cunningham v. Cornell is testing whether traditional 401k fiduciary compliance truly protects plan sponsors. Courts and regulators are probing governance gaps, personal liability, and participant harm more aggressively than ever.
