Empower Retirement, the nation’s second-largest retirement services provider, will acquire Fifth Third Bank’s recordkeeping services. The news comes on the heels of Empower’s acquisition of MassMutual’s retirement plan business earlier this month.
Under the agreement, Empower will acquire 476 retirement plans, providing recordkeeping and administrative services. Fifth Third will continue to serve in a plan-level investment advisory capacity for most of the plans with a continued focus on providing independent fiduciary advisory services.
Fifth Third said its retirement plan business for its institutional clients will now focus on independent fiduciary advisory services and comprehensive investment solutions.
Empower currently provides recordkeeping services for Fifth Third’s retirement business through its private-label retirement plan unit, Empower Institutional. Because of this existing relationship, the Fifth Third plans will not require conversions.
“With today’s announcement, Empower and Fifth Third are together taking the next step toward addressing the needs of plan sponsors, their workers and retirees through the combination of expertise, talent and business scale being created,” Edmund F. Murphy, III, Empower Retirement President and CEO, said in a statement. “This is an exciting evolution of the existing 16-year relationship between Empower and Fifth Third. With the addition of these plans to Empower’s platform, we will continue to expand our capabilities for these savers, enhance our financial wellness and advice offerings, and accelerate our value creation for all our stakeholders.”
The companies say Fifth Third’s retirement plan business is highly regarded in the retirement industry for its robust defined contribution plan offerings, its deep commitment to participants, financial professionals and plan sponsors and innovative solutions to achieve financial wellness.
“The transition to Empower Retirement underscores Fifth Third’s clear commitment to creating value for our clients by keeping them at the center of all we do,” added Kristine Garrett, executive vice president, head of Wealth and Asset Management at Fifth Third. “It is our collective goal to ensure our clients receive the same high standard of service they expect, while gaining the technological excellence and deep product capabilities offered by Empower.”
Empower today administers $667 billion in assets for 9.7 million workers and retirees through approximately 41,000 workplace savings plans.
Recent acquisitions
In August, Empower announced it had completed the acquisition of Personal Capital, a registered investment adviser and wealth manager. The Personal Capital platform offers personalized financial advice, financial planning and goal setting, providing insights and tools for plan participants and individual investors.
On Sept. 8 Empower announced that it had entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the MassMutual retirement plan business. The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2020 pending customary regulatory approvals. The combined firm will serve retirement plans sponsored by a broad spectrum of employers.
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.
