Two weeks ago on these pages I penned an article titled “What are Ayres/Curtis Thinking?” After a litany of questions and at least one medieval allusion, I tantalizingly questioned whether Ayres/Curtis “have an end other than ‘proving’ we have a 401k fee problem.”
It turns out I was more correct that even I thought. How do I know? Because Quinn Curtis told me (you can read about it here in “Exclusive Interview: Quinn Curtis Reveals True Intent of the Curtis/Ayres 401k Fee Paper,” FiduciaryNews.com, March 18, 2014).
In retrospect, I should have suspected their true intent. The paper is filled with citations of so many court cases it read more like a legal brief than a typical financial research paper. It was the data analysis, though, that threw me, and, I would surmise, many others. In fact, as Curtis explains, he and Ayres didn’t really want to argue of investment theory or the definition of “high” fees. The two definitely believe the costs of at least some 401k plans remains too high, but, despite the headline grabbing nature of “high fees,” this was not their point.
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Christopher Carosa
Chris Carosa has been writing a weekly article and monthly column for BenefitsPRO online and BenefitsPRO Magazine since 2011 and is a nationally recognized award-winning writer, researcher and speaker. He’s written seven books, including From Cradle to Retire: The Child IRA; Hey! What’s My Number? – How to Increase the Odds You Will Retire in Comfort; A Pizza The Action: Everything I Ever Learned About Business I Learned By Working in a Pizza Stand at the Erie County Fair; and the widely acclaimed 401(k) Fiduciary Solutions. Carosa is also Chief Contributing Editor of the authoritative trade journal FiduciaryNews.com and publisher of the Mendon-Honeoye Falls-Lima Sentinel, a weekly community newspaper he founded in 1989. Currently serving as President of the National Society of Newspaper Columnists and with more than 1,000 articles published in various publications, he appears regularly in the national media. A “parallel” entrepreneur, he actively runs a handful of businesses, including a small boutique investment adviser, providing hands-on experience for his writing. A trained astrophysicist, he also holds an MBA and has been designated a Certified Trust and Financial Advisor. Share your thoughts and story ideas with him through Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/christophercarosa/)and Twitter (https://twitter.com/ChrisCarosa).
