Transamerica Selected as Recordkeeper for Franklin Templeton Retirement Group Plan Solution

Rhea-AI Summary

Transamerica has been selected by Franklin Templeton as the recordkeeper for its new retirement plan solution, the Franklin Templeton Group Plan Solution, aimed at small to mid-size businesses. This partnership allows employers to access group pricing and professional fiduciary services through DWC and LeafHouse Financial. The collaboration seeks to enhance retirement plan coverage and streamline operations for HR departments, enabling them to focus on their core responsibilities. The plan meets various ERISA requirements at the individual plan level.

Positive

• Transamerica appointed as recordkeeper for Franklin Templeton's Group Plan Solution.
• Partnership offers group pricing benefits to small to mid-size businesses.
• Employers can access professional plan services that enhance operational efficiency.

Negative

• None.

BALTIMORE, Dec. 1, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Transamerica has been selected by Franklin Templeton as the recordkeeper for a new retirement plan solution. The Franklin Templeton Group Plan Solution is offered exclusively through Franklin Templeton and was created for employers seeking to benefit from group pricing and access to services not always available, particularly to smaller companies.

"We believe every U.S. worker and household should have the right to experience financial wellbeing throughout each phase of life and access to a workplace retirement plan is a critical step towards achieving that," said Yaqub Ahmed, Head of Retirement, Insurance & 529 – U.S. at Franklin Templeton. "In this strategic partnership, we look forward to empowering financial professionals with a retirement plan offering for small to mid-size businesses that has advantages similar to what many larger scale plans can offer."

Under the arrangement, Transamerica will serve as recordkeeper for these retirement plans. In addition, DWC – The 401(k) Experts will provide 3(16) plan administrator fiduciary services, and LeafHouse Financial be the 3(38) investment fiduciary.

"We applaud Franklin Templeton for its forward-thinking strategy to expand retirement plan coverage in the workplace. This solution enables employers to offload the responsibility for typical day-to-day tasks to DWC, which saves time for their human resources departments. Support includes approval of distributions and loans, and monitoring plan eligibility," said Darren Zino, Senior Managing Director of U.S. Retirement Distribution at Transamerica. "This solution gives employers access to professional plan services that they might not otherwise be in a position to afford. Transamerica is honored to be part of this new solution, and we look forward to working with DWC and LeafHouse Financial to bring the best of services to Franklin Templeton's retirement plan clients."

"We are excited to build on our successful Transamerica and DWC defined contribution service model by building a customized investment advisor solution with Franklin Templeton," said Keith Clark, Managing Partner at DWC. "Lori Reay, Partner at DWC has spent a lot of time working with LeafHouse, Transamerica, and Franklin Templeton, making sure this is a competitive solution for the small and middle plan marketplace."

"We believe this collaboration between Franklin Templeton, Transamerica and LeafHouse offers a high end service with a competitive price that allows the advisor to stay at the center of the client relationship," added Todd Kading, President of LeafHouse Financial.

To learn more about the Franklin Templeton Group Plan Solution, please contact a Franklin Templeton retirement consultant at (800) 530-2432.

About Transamerica
With a history that dates back more than 100 years, Transamerica is recognized as a leading provider of life insurance, retirement, and investment solutions, serving millions of customers throughout the United States. Recognizing the necessity of health and wellness during peak working life, Transamerica's dedicated professionals work to help people take the steps necessary to live better today so they can worry less about tomorrow. Transamerica serves nearly every customer segment, providing a broad range of quality life insurance and investment products, individual and group pension plans, as well as asset management services. In 2020, Transamerica fulfilled its promises to customers, paying more than $49 billion in insurance, retirement, and annuity claims and benefits, including return of annuity premiums paid by the customer. Transamerica's corporate headquarters is located in Baltimore, Maryland, with other major operations in Cedar Rapids, Iowa and Denver, Colorado. Transamerica is part of the Aegon group of companies. Based in the Netherlands, Aegon is a diversified financial services group focused on providing investment, protection, and retirement solutions. For the full year of 2020, Aegon managed over $1.1 trillion in revenue generating investments. For more information, visit www.transamerica.com.

The Group Plan Solution is not a multiple employer plan (MEP). Unlike a MEP, certain plan qualification and ERISA requirements are applied at the individual plan level. An employer participating in the plan retains certain fiduciary responsibilities, including responsibility for retaining and monitoring the 3(16) plan administrator, for determining the reasonableness of its fees, and for periodically reviewing the plan as a whole. Transamerica does not act as a 3(16) plan fiduciary.

Before adopting any plan, sponsors should carefully consider all of the benefits, risks, and costs associated with a plan. Information regarding retirement plans is general and is not intended as legal or tax advice. Retirement plans are complex, and the federal and state laws or regulations on which they are based vary for each type of plan and are subject to change. In addition, some products, investment vehicles, and services may not be available or appropriate in all workplace retirement plans. Plan sponsors and plan administrators may wish to seek the advice of legal counsel or a tax professional to address their specific situations.

Securities offered through Transamerica Investors Securities Corporation (TISC), member FINRA, 440 Mamaroneck Avenue, Harrison, NY 10528. Transamerica is not affiliated with Franklin Templeton or DWC, nor their subsidiaries or affiliates.

Transamerica is not affiliated with Franklin Templeton or DWC, nor their subsidiaries or affiliates.

About Franklin Templeton
Franklin Resources, Inc. [NYSE:BEN] is a global investment management organization with subsidiaries operating as Franklin Templeton and serving clients in over 165 countries. Franklin Templeton's mission is to help clients achieve better outcomes through investment management expertise, wealth management and technology solutions. Through its specialist investment managers, the company brings extensive capabilities in equity, fixed income, multi-asset solutions and alternatives. With offices in more than 30 countries and approximately 1,300 investment professionals, the California-based company has over 70 years of investment experience and over $1.5 trillion in assets under management as of October 31, 2021. For more information, please visit franklintempleton.com.

About DWC
DWC serves more than 2,500 clients across the country. They range in size from single-participant defined benefit plans to complex 401(k) plans including several thousand employees. They come from all industries from residential construction and professional practices to rocket scientists, literally.

About LeafHouse Financial
LeafHouse is a unique investment manager that specializes in providing fiduciary services at a plan level. Its objective is to deliver quality investment services to defined contribution (DC) and Defined Benefit (DB) retirement plans that incorporate fiduciary management principles and Employee Retirement Income Securities Act (ERISA) best practices for participant-directed retirement plan sponsors.

Its program encompasses a comprehensive and systematic process that enables LeafHouse to document and prudently select, evaluate, and monitor funds using generally accepted investment principles and modern portfolio theories widely accepted in the academic world. The fund evaluation and monitoring methodology provides a consistent and documented process to fulfill fiduciary obligations. This process was designed to enable LeafHouse to make investment decisions solely in the best interests of plan participants and their beneficiaries.

LeafHouse delivers quality investment services and provides the highest degree of fiduciary protection against legal challenges, regulatory uncertainty, and market volatility. We provide fee transparency and avoid or mitigate conflicts of interest.

LeafHouse is a registered investment advisor. Registration does not imply a certain level of skills or training. More information about the firm, including its investment strategies and objectives, can be found in the company's ADV Part 2, which is available, without charge, upon request. Their Form ADV contains information regarding LeafHouse Financial' s business practices and the backgrounds of our key personnel.

Media inquiries:

Email: Media.Relations@transamerica.com

Hank Williams
(319) 355-7789

Julie Quinlan
(303) 383-5923

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SOURCE TRANSAMERICA

FAQ

What is the Franklin Templeton Group Plan Solution?

The Franklin Templeton Group Plan Solution is a new retirement plan solution aimed at small to mid-size businesses, offering group pricing and enhanced services.

Who is the recordkeeper for Franklin Templeton's new retirement plan?

Transamerica has been selected as the recordkeeper for the Franklin Templeton Group Plan Solution.

What are the benefits of the Franklin Templeton Group Plan Solution?

The plan offers group pricing, access to professional fiduciary services, and aims to improve retirement plan coverage for small businesses.

When was the announcement made regarding Transamerica's partnership with Franklin Templeton?

The announcement was made on December 1, 2021.

What services will DWC and LeafHouse Financial provide in this partnership?

DWC will provide 3(16) plan administrator fiduciary services, while LeafHouse Financial will serve as the 3(38) investment fiduciary.