Swap or Not? Regulators Assess Stable Value under Dodd-Frank Act
By Randy Myers Is a stable value fund really a swap? Under the terms of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010, the over-the-counter derivatives market now falls under the purview of federal regulators. Those regulators–at the Securities & Exchange is reason to believe that stable value funds do not meet […]
Behind the Curtain: 401(k) Particpants Ride Out Market Storms
By Randy Myers Many investors panicked during the stock market downturn that stretched from late 2007 to early 2009, but investors in 401(k) plans proved remarkably unflappable. In examining the retirement plans T. Rowe Price Group Inc. administers on behalf of clients, it found that the percentage of eligible employees who participated in those plans […]
Post-Mortem: The Midterm “Recession Election,” and a Look Ahead to 2012
By Randy Myers Republicans may have manhandled Democrats in the recent midterm election, but it’s probably too soon to assume their victory will carry over to a win in the White House in 2012, says political pundit David Wasserman, house editor of the Cook Political Report. Addressing the 2010 SVIA Fall Forum, Wasserman attributed the […]
Stable Value Continues to Deliver on Its Promise
By Randy Myers In an uncertain economic environment, stable value funds have continued to deliver to investors what they have long promised–long-term returns comparable to those available from intermediate-term bond funds but without the corresponding short-term volatility–SVIA president Gina Mitchell told participants at the organization’s 2010 Fall Forum in Washington, D.C. Since the end of […]
Why Stable Value Makes Sense as a Source of Retirement Income
By Randy Myers Many financial experts are touting immediate annuities as a tool for generating retirement income. Behavioral economics suggests they may want to look at stable value funds, too. The problem with immediate annuities, author John Nelson told participants at the 2010 SVIA Fall Forum, is that they require retirees to exchange a lump […]
Stable Times Volume 15 Issue 2
The biannual publication of the Stable Value Investment Association that covers both industry concerns and association activities.
Stable Times Volume 15 Issue 1
The biannual publication of the Stable Value Investment Association that covers both industry concerns and association activities.
401(k) System Passes “Trial by Fire”
By Randy Myers Not so long ago—the 1980s, to be precise—it was commonly argued that the self-directed, largely participant-funded 401(k) retirement system would implode if the financial markets experienced a severe crisis. Individual investors, the theory went, would not have the sophistication or the stomach to successfully negotiate a dramatic upheaval in the financial markets. […]
Prudential Strategist Argues for Moderation by Fed in Raising Interest Rates
By Randy Myers With the worst of the financial crisis apparently behind us, the Federal Reserve may try to push interest rates higher toward the end of this year, says Robert Tipp, chief investment strategist for Prudential Insurance Co.’s Prudential Fixed Income unit. But he wouldn’t advise it. A more prudent course, he argues, would […]