For all the good intentions, however, what will happen when the rubber finally meets the road? Will the new DOL Fiduciary Rule really level the playing field?
Tag "Ron Surz"
Plan sponsors need to think about it in these terms: Does it make sense to have a pork-belly ETF on a 401k investment menu? How about orange futures?
This broader definition of fiduciary may impose a potential hardship on a segment of the retirement industry that has been trying hard to gain a foothold in plan infrastructure.
The antiseptic compliance regime spelled out by the DOL and ERISA has to date defined fiduciary services. Perhaps, if we’re going to consider what is “beyond” that sterile definition, we might want to go back to the future. In a sense, rediscovering where “fiduciary” initially came from might suggest where it is headed.
Back then, at least, we knew who wore the white hats and who whore the black hats. Today, thanks to muddled and often conflicting regulations for multiple agencies, everyone is wearing fifty shades of gray.
So what if a few very high net savers end up with bigger retirement plans? Good for them. The point is to make it easier for more people to save more.
The Biden Rule, like the Trump Rule, does not encourage or discourage the use of ESG criteria when selecting investments. This allows fiduciaries to either adopt ESG principles or ignore them.
By far, there’s almost universal agreement that 401k fiduciaries should be less concerned about investment performance than you might have seen a generation ago. Why is this so?
Not only do you need to watch the place that holds all the money, you need to watch the pipeline that feeds the money there.
I 💖 Fiduciary
All kidding aside, Valentine’s Day is more than cards, candy, and Cupid. It’s about renewing a vow to treat each other with the highest fiduciary standard.