"INCOME BLUEPRINT" FOR RETIREMENT PLAN FIDUCIARIES LAUNCHES

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Sep 20, 2022, 10:05 ET

American Century's Online Tool Offers Evaluation Framework for In-Plan Guaranteed Income Options

KANSAS CITY, Mo., Sept. 20, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- American Century Investments^® has launched Income Blueprint, a first-of-its-kind online tool to help retirement plan fiduciaries implement a prudent process to evaluate and choose in-plan guaranteed income products for their clients in line with the recently passed SECURE Act's guidance. The Income Blueprint tool simplifies the complex world of available products and generates a customizable report that compares and scores each one according to plan preferences.

The Income Blueprint comes at a time of high interest from plan participants, combined with a safe harbor and portability provisions included in the SECURE Act, according to Glenn Dial, American Century senior retirement strategist.

"As the Baby Boomer generation ages, a growing number of people are moving from accumulation of assets to withdrawal of funds at retirement, increasing demand for these products," said Dial. "Overall, interest is high, with 76% of respondents in our 2021 retirement survey showing interest in investment options specifically designed to help them draw income from their plan savings during retirement."

"As rising demand and high interest lead more retirement fiduciaries to consider in-plan retirement income options, they need clarity to make the best selections and confidence that they've fulfilled industry regulations and maintained their safe harbor," added Rick Luchinsky, American Century's co-head of Intermediary Distribution. "We created the Income Blueprint tool to offer clients a holistic extension of their practice to help solve their needs."

Income Blueprint Brings Clarity to the Retirement Income Universe

The Income Blueprint organizes the SECURE Act's guidance on the selection of a lifetime income provider into three simple, documented steps. The first step identifies the type of insurance product based on unique features, such as guarantees, liquidity, growth potential and fee structure. Starting the process through the lens of these unique features gives the Income Blueprint an objective, thorough and analytical foundation.

The second step considers costs in relation to features and benefits. In this step, users rank the importance of plan features to customize their weighting against costs. According to Dial, this step of the Income Blueprint addresses a significant need for advisors and plan sponsors shifting mindsets from fee-based decision making. "The SECURE Act codifies that it's OK to pay for a product that solves the needs of participants. The Income Blueprint provides an objective and holistic comparison of products so that fiduciaries can find a good fit based on features and benefits, as well as costs."

The third and final step considers the financial capability of the insurer. After the product is selected, fiduciaries must obtain written representation from the insurer and periodically review this document.

Income Blueprint Builds Confidence in Meeting Industry Standards

Income Blueprint users create their own personalized library of guaranteed income products and their features. The tool stores uploaded data for each individual product, including insurer documentation, for client-specific product comparisons. All information entered in Income Blueprint is saved by a specific user.

Income Blueprint provides an easy-to-read report that reviews the evaluation process and provides documentation for product selection. These reports align with the SECURE Act, with the goal of providing safe harbor for fiduciaries who use Income Blueprint to advise their clients.

Financial advisors who are interested can contact their American Century regional retirement specialist at 800-345-6488 for more information or visit the online Income Blueprint to start generating custom reports. They may also register for a webcast introducing the Income Blueprint. Presenters Bradford Campbell, JD, partner with Faegre, Drinker and American Century's Dial will demonstrate the tool.

About American Century Investments

American Century Investments is a leading global asset manager focused on delivering investment results and building long-term client relationships while supporting breakthrough medical research. Founded in 1958, American Century Investments' 1,400 employees serve financial professionals, institutions, corporations and individual investors from offices in New York; London; Frankfurt; Hong Kong; Sydney; Los Angeles; Santa Clara, Calif.; and Kansas City, Mo. Jonathan Thomas is president and chief executive officer, and Victor Zhang serves as chief investment officer. Delivering investment results to clients enables American Century Investments to distribute over 40 percent of its dividends to the Stowers Institute for Medical Research, a 500-person, non-profit basic biomedical research organization. The Institute owns more than 40 percent of American Century Investments and has received dividend payments of $1.8 billion since 2000. For more information about American Century Investments, visit www.americancentury.com.