Defined Contribution

The Retirement Fairness for Charities and Educational Institutions Act of 2025 is supported by the National Association of Government Defined Contribution Administrators, which serves 15 million teachers, hospital workers, and nonprofit employees.

The world's largest asset management firm has partnered with Great Gray to provide a TDF to serve as default investments for most 401(k) plans that automatically enroll workers, following a similar announcement from State Street, which announced a new target date fund in April.

Amid heightened concerns around inflation, employees are increasingly interested in "comprehensive" retirement benefits, such as access to financial advisors, retirement planning support and retirement income solutions.

Plan sponsors must benchmark their plan selection funds yearly and replace those underperforming funds, recommends Abernathy Daley 401k Consultants, which assessed performance data from over 58,000 401(k) plans.

As Empower's new program paves the way for private market investments and BlackRock's CEO calls for more of these assets in 401(k)s, the SEC said it will explore this new investment opportunity, as "there may be risks, as well as benefits, for retirement savers."

The House Education and Workforce Committee approved the Protecting Prudent Investment of Retirement Savings Act on Wednesday that allows plan fiduciaries to consider environmental, social and governance factors when selecting retirement investments.