DC Investment Managers: Advocating for Sustainable Retirement

The Greater Houston Partnership's International Investment and Trade team traveled to Washington, D.C. this week to meet with various Investment management firms to discuss their strategies for advocating for sustainable retirement planning. The team met with Threadneedle Investment technology fund to replace the MFS technology Fund, a similar fund managed by MFS Investment Management. Defined contribution plan sponsors have access to new sustainable retirement options, such as Threadneedle’s technology fund.

Toria Scotto (CFP®, CPWA®) began her UBS career in 2004 and she provides financial planning and Investment management services to clients in the DC area. Toria is a strong advocate for sustainable retirement planning and has been instrumental in bringing various Investment management firms together to discuss the issue.

The team also met with the team at Smart Pension, a retirement provider founded in 2014. The firm is supported by a number of investors, including Natixis, Legal & General Investment Management, Link Group, and the Greater Houston Partnership. Smart Pension has been advocating for sustainable retirement planning for many years, and the team at the International Investment and Trade team hopes to learn from their experience.

The team was also interested in learning about the SEC's proposed swing pricing method, which is widely used in Europe. The method allows fund managers to adjust the net asset value of a fund to account for market fluctuations. This method is important for DC Investment managers because it helps ensure that Investment remain sustainable in the long-term.

The team also discussed the role of plan managers in the DC Investment management industry. This includes defined contribution (DC) and defined benefit (DB) managers. The team was interested in learning more about how these plan managers can help ensure that Investment remain sustainable in the long-term.

The team at the International Investment and Trade team believes that sustainable retirement planning is important for DC Investment managers, and they hope that their meeting with various firms in the DC area will help to further the conversation.

A group of people in a meeting discussing sustainable retirement planning.