GREENWOOD VILLAGE, Colo., Oct. 28, 2020 — Empower Retirement, the nation’s second-largest retirement services provider,¹ is receiving top marks in new surveys from PLANADVISER and Financial Advisor IQ, independent news sources that are read by financial advisors.

Retirement plan advisors across the country have for the ninth consecutive year named Empower Retirement No. 1 when it comes to “Value for Price” — a top consideration for them when choosing a recordkeeper according to PLANADVISER Magazine.

According to early results of its survey of advisors, PLANADVISER said Empower was named No. 1 in multiple categories — including “Overall Service, Small Plans” ($5 - $50 million).

Survey results released early showed that four out of five advisors would recommend Empower to their clients, making it the No. 1 highest-recommended provider.

This year’s survey results revealed that the worldwide pandemic was top of mind. Quality of sponsor support rose to the second-most important quality advisors consider when choosing a recordkeeping — “perhaps a reflection of navigating COVID,” PLANADVISER editors noted in their announcement of the awards.

As COVID-19 took hold across the country, Empower took action to support the needs of retirement savers and kept in constant communication with sponsors and advisors. This year’s PLANADVISER survey results show that 92 percent of advisors reported having multiple interactions with Empower, making it No. 1 in reported interactions.

“This year, we all faced new challenges as we learned to navigate the worldwide pandemic and its ripple effects on the economy and Americans’ finances,” said Edmund F. Murphy III, Empower Retirement President and CEO. “Empower doubled down on our communications with advisors to ensure that we maintained the highest quality of service to which our retirement savers are accustomed. We are incredibly gratified to have built such a strong relationship with 30,000 advisors, and we believe that our advisor-centric business model is key to success for our stakeholders.”

The 2020 survey of 472 advisors is part of PLANADVISER’s thirteenth annual “Retirement Plan Adviser Survey,” which examines the factors that advisors consider when selecting providers and spotlights the companies they prefer, according to the magazine’s editors. For more information on the survey see the PLANADVISER website.

In addition, Empower Retirement was awarded five “Gold Medals,” including one in the “Best Overall” recordkeeper category, from financial advisors across the country.

In its inaugural Service Awards survey, Financial Advisor IQ asked more than 1,100 financial advisors to identify the firms they consider to be leaders in the evolving investment management business.

Empower was their top choice and the gold medal winner in five of six categories: “Best Participants” “Best Reporting,” “Best Client Service,” “Best Price” and “Best Overall.”

“We are honored by these awards. These gold medals represent the team effort between Empower associates and financial advisors, whom we believe are at the center of our offer,” said Murphy. “We’re grateful to every advisor with whom we work.”

Financial Advisor IQ is an advisor resource from the Financial Times. Its mission is to inform, educate and connect advisors with daily news focusing on practice management and industry content from leading fund firms. Financial Advisor IQ surveyed financial advisors who work with asset managers, defined contribution recordkeepers and Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) law firms. Only advisors’ votes determined the gold, silver and bronze medal winners across 21 categories. Read their report here.

“These Service Awards are an important reminder of the strong bond between financial advisors and the service partners they rely on,” the Financial Advisor IQ announcement said. “Such ties are especially significant now, as COVID-19 and the related recession accelerate change across the investment business.”

In its announcement of early survey results, PLANADVISER noted that among the most significant changes in the recordkeeping sector this year have been Empower’s recent acquisitions. This summer Empower announced $4.3 billion in strategic acquisitions in the 92 days from June 28 to Sept. 28 and has increased the scale and scope of its business to accompany a much wider array of retirement plans and a broad new offer to serve a more complete array of financial needs for millions of retirement investors.

The recently completed acquisition of Personal Capital and announced plans to acquire the retirement businesses of MassMutual and Fifth Third Bank combine to form a more robust enterprise bolstered by new client commitments.²

“We are thrilled that advisors view Empower as a leader in multiple categories, including best overall service for small plans,” Murphy said. “With the MassMutual acquisition, we will continue to be top in service and now the largest provider for plans under $50 million. We look forward to our continued partnership with advisors and addressing the complex and evolving needs of millions of workers and retirees through the combination of expertise, talent and business scale being created.”

About Empower Retirement

Headquartered in metro Denver, Empower Retirement administers $714 billion in assets³ for more than 9.7 million retirement plan participants as of August 31, 2020. It is the nation’s second-largest retirement plan recordkeeper by total participants.¹ Empower serves all segments of the employer-sponsored retirement plan market: government 457 plans; small, midsize and large corporate 401(k) clients; nonprofit 403(b) entities; private-label recordkeeping clients; and IRA customers. Personal Capital, a subsidiary of Empower Retirement, is an industry-leading hybrid wealth manager that currently manages more than $13 billion in assets virtually delivered from offices across the U.S. For more information please visit empower-retirement.com and connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram.

Media contacts:

Empower Retirement:

Stephen Gawlik, Stephen.Gawlik@empower-retirement.com, 617-417-4408

Monica Mendoza, Monica.Mendoza@empower-retirement.com, 719-373-2460