Voya Financial Builds Momentum in Private Education Market with Four New Retirement Plan Clients

Wednesday, July 13, 2016

WINDSOR, Conn., July 13, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Voya Financial, Inc. (NYSE: VOYA), announced today that it has earned the business of four private education institutions and will serve as the new recordkeeper for their individual retirement plans. The plans, when combined, represent more than $71 million in transferrable assets and approximately 1,200 participating members. Already a top provider in the public education space1, these new business opportunities highlight Voya's ongoing focus and commitment to serving plan sponsors and their educators in the private higher education and independent K-12 school markets.

Specific details on each of the four sponsors and their retirement plans include the following:

  • University of Rio Grande (Rio Grande, Ohio) – The private higher education university selected Voya as the new service provider for its University of Rio Grande 401(k) Plan. The defined contribution plan consists of approximately $10 million in transferrable assets and more than 170 participants. The plan transitioned to Voya's administrative platform April 1, 2016. The consultant Nyhart Actuary and Employee Benefits assisted in the search.
  • Texas Wesleyan University (Forth Worth, Texas) – The private higher education university selected Voya as the new service provider for its Texas Wesleyan 403(b) and 401(a) Plans. The two retirement savings plans consist of approximately $25 million in transferrable assets and nearly 500 participants. The plans transitioned to Voya's administrative platform May 11, 2016.
  • The Episcopal School of Dallas (Dallas, Texas) – The independent K-12 school selected Voya as the new service provider for its Episcopal School of Dallas 403(b) Plan. The defined contribution plan consists of approximately $32 million in transferrable assets and more than 450 participants, which includes both active and inactive members. The plan transitioned to Voya's administrative platform June 1, 2016. The Episcopal School of Dallas selected Voya after more than 30 years with its former provider. The consultant PlanPilot assisted in the search.
  • Shulamith School for Girls (Brooklyn, New York) – The independent K-12 school selected Voya as the new service provider for its Shulamith School 403(b) Plan. The defined contribution plan consists of approximately $4.2 million in transferrable assets and 75 participants, which includes both active and inactive members. The plan transitioned to Voya's administrative platform June 17, 2016.

"We are extremely pleased to add these well-regarded institutions to our growing list of private university and independent school clients," said Heather Lavallee, president of Tax-Exempt Markets at Voya Financial. "Voya has a long history of serving the academic community and helping educators and employees prepare for their retirement. We have recently made investments to expand our team and capabilities to better serve the private education market. These new partnerships demonstrate the momentum we are building and our ability to work with all types of sponsors — regardless of their geographic location, plan size and unique goals."

As part of Voya's commitment to advancing the retirement readiness of Americans, Voya will provide administrative and recordkeeping services for each of the sponsor's retirement plan programs, as well as a variety of decision-making and planning tools. These resources include Voya's enhanced participant website, which features the award-winning myOrangeMoney® retirement income planning capability. Voya will also provide on-site support to participants through its team of local financial advisors, in addition to communication and education programs designed to engage and motivate plan members to save. Participants will also have access to a wide range of investment options to help grow their retirement savings.

"Following a thorough national search, our employee representatives were unanimous and enthusiastic about choosing Voya," said Robert Buchholz, chief financial officer at The Episcopal School of Dallas. "The transition from our previous recordkeeper to Voya has been effortless, and we are proud to be with a brand that is a commanding force in the market."

"We assisted The Episcopal School of Dallas with the core fiduciary responsibility of reviewing their recordkeeper's services and fees," said Mark Olsen, managing director at PlanPilot. "Through this process, it was evident that Voya's approach — especially in the area of participant education — would lead to superior investment decision-making and increased deferrals for participants. Ultimately, this will lead to participants being better positioned for retirement." 

As an industry leader and advocate for greater retirement readiness, Voya Financial is committed to delivering on its vision to be America's Retirement CompanyTM and its mission to make a secure financial future possible — one person, one family, one institution at a time. 

Media Contact:
Bill Sutton
Voya Financial
Office:  (860) 580-2626
Cell:  (315) 373-9685
[email protected]                                

About Voya Financial®
Voya Financial, Inc. (NYSE: VOYA), helps Americans plan, invest and protect their savings — to get ready to retire better. Serving the financial needs of approximately 13 million individual and institutional customers in the United States, Voya is a Fortune 500 company that had $11 billion in revenue in 2015. The company had $458 billion in total assets under management and administration as of March 31, 2016. With a clear mission to make a secure financial future possible — one person, one family, one institution at a time — Voya's vision is to be America's Retirement Company™. The company is equally committed to conducting business in a way that is socially, environmentally, economically and ethically responsible — Voya has been recognized as one of the 2016 World's Most Ethical Companies® by the Ethisphere Institute, and as one of the Top Green Companies in the U.S., by Newsweek magazine. For more information, visit voya.com. Follow Voya Financial on Facebook and Twitter @Voya.

1) Voya Financial ranked as a top 3 provider in K-12 Education and top 4 provider in the Higher Education markets according to LIMRA Quarterly Not-for-Profit Sales (NFP) and Assets Survey of 28 companies, based on assets as of Dec. 31, 2015, with total NFP and Government rankings based on AUM/AUA and all other rankings based on AUM.

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