Retirement Clearinghouse Applauds White House Initiatives to Improve Retirement Savings Portability

CHARLOTTE, N.C. and BETHESDA, Md., Jan. 26, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Robert L. Johnson, Founder and Chairman of the RLJ Companies and majority investor in Retirement Clearinghouse, LLC, welcomes President Barack Obama's initiatives to enable more Americans to create a retirement nest egg, and make it easier for American workers to move their retirement savings into their new employers' plans when they change jobs.

"We thank President Obama for highlighting the importance of seamless portability for retirement savers," said Mr. Johnson. "Retirement Clearinghouse's efforts to advocate for, and implement, auto portability across the country is another example of how innovation and dedication from non-government entities can inspire public policy benefits that produce a tremendous impact for hard-working Americans, and particularly minority Americans who need more retirement savings. We are also grateful to the bicameral group of Congressional members, led by Senator Patty Murray (D-Wash.), who in November urged the Employee Benefits Security Administration to issue guidance on auto portability for employers."

Auto portability cures the twin issues of leakage and lost/missing accounts that plague the small balance segment of the mobile workforce—the younger and lower-income workers with less than $5,000 in their accounts—by employing innovative and scalable technology to automatically move their savings forward to their new employers' plans when they change jobs.

"Retirement Clearinghouse has been working with the Departments of Labor and Treasury, legislators on Capitol Hill, industry associations, financial services companies and plan sponsors to deliver portability solutions to large and small employers," said Spencer Williams, President and CEO of Retirement Clearinghouse. "We are thrilled that the White House and Labor Department are providing much-needed emphasis on the need for innovative technologies that can produce better retirement savings outcomes for millions of Americans."

Beginning in 2014, Retirement Clearinghouse has been engaged in an open and collaborative dialogue with a group of the largest retirement services providers about implementing, on a national scale, a utility model which has all the elements of a cooperative structure, enabling workers to seamlessly and automatically move their 401(k) accounts from employer to employer—through a safe harbor IRA—when they change jobs. Through its experience in the field, and guided by feedback from key stakeholders, Retirement Clearinghouse has come to understand that such a structure provides the most benefit to participants, plan sponsors, retirement service providers  and other stakeholders in the U.S. retirement system.

About Retirement Clearinghouse
Retirement Clearinghouse, LLC is the leading provider of portability and consolidation services for defined contribution plans, acting as a trusted, unbiased intermediary between plan sponsors, participants, record-keepers and other parties. Retirement Clearinghouse's integrated financial technology, data and information solutions facilitate automated consolidation of small, redundant accounts for sponsors to improve plan performance metrics, and enable participants, regardless of account balance, to seamlessly transport their retirement savings through every phase of their careers.

Retirement Clearinghouse's portability solutions have been proven to cut cash-outs by over 50% and significantly increase average account balances. The firm's portability solutions include a domestic call center providing specialized assistance designed to enable end-to-end portability and account consolidation; uncashed check services; and the capability to search for lost and missing participants.

Originally established as RolloverSystems in 2001, Charlotte, N.C.-based Retirement Clearinghouse works with more than 17,100 retirement plans and has helped guide over 1 million plan participants with more than $14.4 billion in retirement savings. Retirement Clearinghouse is a portfolio company of The RLJ Companies, founded by Robert L. Johnson. For more information, please visit www.rch1.com.

About The RLJ Companies
The RLJ Companies, founded by Robert L. Johnson, is an innovative business network that provides strategic investments in a diverse portfolio of companies. Within The RLJ Companies portfolio, Johnson owns or holds interests in businesses operating in a publicly traded hotel real estate investment trust, private equity, financial services, asset management, automobile dealerships, sports and entertainment, and video lottery terminal (VLT) gaming. The RLJ Companies is headquartered in Bethesda, MD, with affiliate operations in Charlotte, NC; Little Rock, AR; Los Angeles, CA; San Juan, PR; and Monrovia, Liberia. Prior to founding The RLJ Companies, Johnson was founder and chairman of Black Entertainment Television (BET).

For more information visit: www.rljcompanies.com.
Media inquiries: Traci Otey Blunt, (240) 744-7858 or [email protected]

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