BNY Mellon Expands Fund Services for ING U.S. Investment Management to Include 529 Plans for Wisconsin, Iowa

NEW YORK, June 12, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- BNY Mellon has expanded its relationship with ING U.S. Investment Management (ING U.S. IM) to provide fund accounting and administration, custody, and transfer agency services for the Wisconsin Tomorrow's Scholar 529 Plan and the Iowa Advisor 529 Plan.

ING U.S. IM was named program manager for the Wisconsin Tomorrow's Scholar 529 Plan in November of 2012 and for the Iowa Advisor 529 Plan in March of 2013.  In this role, ING U.S. IM handles all investment, product, marketing, sales and distribution, customer service and recordkeeping activities for the two programs.

The Wisconsin 529 plan encompasses 39 investment options with more than 121,000 shareholder accounts and approximately $1.4 billion in assets. The Iowa 529 plan encompasses 22 investment options with over 38,000 shareholder accounts and approximately $150 million in assets.

"As the cost of higher education continues to rise, it's no surprise that college tuition has become one of the biggest concerns investors face today," said Michael J. Roland, managing director and chief operating officer for ING Funds.  "Savings vehicles like 529 plans are becoming increasingly popular, and our goal is to provide these options as a way to help advisors and their clients meet their investment objectives with confidence.  BNY Mellon has been providing fund services for our mutual funds since 2003, and we look forward to expanding our successful relationship to now include these two advisor-sold 529 savings plans for Wisconsin and Iowa."

"BNY Mellon is committed to providing our investment manager clients with robust servicing solutions, including 529 services, to enhance their competitiveness," said Nancy Wolcott, executive vice president and head of client service delivery for BNY Mellon's Global Financial Institutions group. "We continue to invest in technology and client services to support 529 plans as well as the growing variety of investment options our clients are bringing to the marketplace."

BNY Mellon currently provides fund accounting and administration services for more than 117 fund complexes with $1.6 trillion in assets in more than 2,000 funds and shareholder recordkeeping services to over 140 million shareholder accounts with assets of more than $3.9 trillion.  

ING U.S. IM is a leading active asset management firm.  As of March 31, 2013, ING U.S. IM manages approximately $187 billion for both affiliated and external institutions, as well as individual investors.  With the experience and resources to invest responsibly across asset classes, geographies and investment styles, ING U.S. IM provides clients with access to domestic, regional and global investment solutions.

BNY Mellon Asset Servicing supports institutional investors in today's fast-evolving markets, safeguarding assets and enhancing the management and administration of client investments through services that process, monitor and measure data from around the world. We leverage our global footprint and local expertise to deliver insight and solutions across every stage of the investment lifecycle.

BNY Mellon is a global investments company dedicated to helping its clients manage and service their financial assets throughout the investment lifecycle. Whether providing financial services for institutions, corporations or individual investors, BNY Mellon delivers informed investment management and investment services in 36 countries and more than 100 markets. As of March 31, 2013, BNY Mellon had $26.3 trillion in assets under custody and/or administration, and $1.4 trillion in assets under management. BNY Mellon can act as a single point of contact for clients looking to create, trade, hold, manage, service, distribute or restructure investments. BNY Mellon is the corporate brand of The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation (NYSE: BK). Additional information is available on www.bnymellon.com, or follow us on Twitter @BNYMellon.

SOURCE BNY Mellon