Annexus New Venture Aims to Reinvent Retirement Plan Market
Annexus Retirement Solutions has developed an innovative solution to deliver lifetime income through defined contribution plans
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. December 15, 2020 – In response to the growing retirement income crisis, today Annexus – the leading designer of retirement income products – announced the launch of Annexus Retirement Solutions. This new venture has focused on reengineering the Target Date Fund structure to enable lifetime income as part of defined contribution plans: a necessary innovation that has eluded the retirement market for years. The company intends to debut its next-generation retirement solution in early 2021. In 2019, funds advised by Blackstone Tactical Opportunities (“Blackstone”) made a strategic minority investment in Annexus and the capital provided will help support this and other growth initiatives.
There has been a growing sense of urgency among defined contribution stakeholders (recordkeepers, plan sponsors, consultants and asset managers) that their retirement plan participants need a path to achieve a more secure financial future. In the wake of the SECURE Act, Annexus Retirement Solutions brings a new perspective to close this gap within the industry.
For decades, providers have attempted to help participants generate retirement income by adding existing insurance products to their defined contribution platform as options alongside their asset management offerings. These options have been complicated and difficult for participants to understand and have lacked full transparency. Their efforts have fallen short of meeting the needs of participants and the fiduciary responsibilities of plan sponsors, leading to very low adoption rates and little impact on solving the income crisis.
The challenge is multifaceted and requires a comprehensive solution. By proactively working with the various stakeholders throughout the design process, Annexus Retirement Solutions developed a completely new and innovative offering that makes it easy for a participant to prepare for a secure financial future. Its revolutionary new design overcomes the barriers that have limited the appeal of lifetime income solutions within retirement plans, including prohibitive costs, lack of true liquidity over the lifetime of the product and the absence of portability if a participant separates service. By eliminating these roadblocks, Annexus Retirement Solutions has developed a solution that delivers a seamless, intuitive and automated experience for both participants and plan sponsors.
“Annexus Retirement Solutions is driven by the philosophy of putting the participant at the center of everything we do. Our product design aims to deliver maximum retirement income through a simple, turnkey solution, without compromising flexibility or control,” said Don Dady, Co-Founder of Annexus. “While companies have been trying to solve the in-plan income challenge for years, by launching Annexus Retirement Solutions, we are offering an integrated solution for a complex problem. Our multidimensional approach enables us to create a win-win situation for participants and providers.”
Menes Chee, Senior Managing Director at Blackstone, said: “We applaud Annexus’ efforts to create innovative solutions to merge workplace retirement savings plans with lifetime income solutions and are excited to support the company’s continued growth.”
Annexus Retirement Solutions was built on Annexus’ long history of producing industry-leading retirement solutions. The company has further added to the depth of its team by hiring retirement industry experts, including Dave Paulsen, former President of Individual Solutions and Chief Distribution Officer of Transamerica, and Charles Millard, former Director of the U.S. Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. By tapping some of the industry’s top minds, Annexus is committed to expanding Annexus Retirement Solutions distribution to help more Americans secure their financial future.
For more information on Annexus Retirement Solutions, please visit: www.annexus.com/ars
About Annexus Retirement Solutions
Annexus Retirement Solutions designs products that help working Americans secure their financial futures leading up to, and all the way through, retirement. These solutions are financially engineered to provide defined contribution plan participants a seamless approach to optimize savings, help maximize a source of lifetime income, and protect against the biggest challenges in retirement – outliving their income. Annexus Retirement Solutions is backed by Annexus, the leading independent developer of insured wealth management solutions. In 2019, Blackstone made a strategic investment in Annexus, acquiring a minority stake in the company. Learn more about Annexus Retirement Solutions at www.annexus.com/ars
