A bevy of known names announced Wednesday that they have combined forces to release a new group plan offering that features the first Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG)-driven target-date series.
“Several factors are cited as contributing to increased demand for ESG. Investors’ growing social awareness tops the list.”
Transamerica, FuturePlan by Ascensus, Natixis Investment Managers, and LeafHouse Financial Advisors will team up on The Sustainable Futures ESG Group Plan Solution, which they say makes “retirement plan sponsorship easier for employers by reducing time-consuming administrative burdens and mitigating fiduciary risk.”
The solution offers an ESG-driven target-date series, Natixis Sustainable Future Funds, launched in 2017.
Open to both existing and start-up 401k plans, it provides guided onboarding and enrollment support and ongoing service from FuturePlan with integration into Transamerica’s recordkeeping system.
FuturePlan serves as the third-party administrator and 3(16) plan administrator. Transamerica is the plan’s recordkeeper, and LeafHouse Financial Advisors is the 3(38) fiduciary investment manager.
“The Sustainable Futures ESG Group Plan Solution allows employers and their financial consultants who seek an ESG approach to lighten the administrative and fiduciary burdens of sponsoring a retirement plan,” Darren Zino, Senior Managing Director of U.S. Retirement Distribution at Transamerica, said in a statement. “This benefit allows them to focus on their business growth while offering a crucial benefit to their employees.”
ESG in demand
Several factors are cited as contributing to increased demand for ESG. Investors’ growing social awareness tops the list, and 86% of fund selectors plan to maintain or increase their ESG offering, according to Natixis Investment Managers’ 2021 ESG Investor Insight Report.
“Investment professionals are increasingly incorporating ESG data into their investment process, and plan participants are indicating a strong preference for choices that are sustainable, responsible, or ESG driven,” added Liana Magner, Executive Vice President and Head of Retirement and Institutional in the U.S. at Natixis Investment Managers.
“LeafHouse Financial pioneered the concepts of ESG integration into retirement plan lineups with LIST, the LeafHouse Investment Sustainability Technology. We are honored to bring that technology to the table with industry leaders like Transamerica, FuturePlan, and Natixis,” Todd Kading, Chief Executive Officer at LeafHouse Financial, concluded. “We believe that this program will allow participants to benefit from investing for a sustainable future.”
With more than 20 years serving financial markets, John Sullivan is the former editor-in-chief of Investment Advisor magazine and retirement editor of ThinkAdvisor.com. Sullivan is also the former editor of Boomer Market Advisor and Bank Advisor magazines, and has a background in the insurance and investment industries in addition to his journalism roots.
