Press Coverage

Some of the biggest growth prospects for record keepers are coming from some of the smallest defined contribution plans, thanks to regulatory changes, competition for scale in a crowded market and greater interest among sponsors.

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“The industry has struggled with overcapacity,” said Michael Contorno, principal and head of DC vendor management at the NEPC consulting firm, who expects more consolidation among larger record keepers.

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“We have 20, but it could be eight or 12,” he said. “There are too many providers chasing clients.”

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Contorno said record keepers can adjust to the crowded market by pursuing deals with PEPs. “If you’re not in it, what chances do you have to succeed?” he said.

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Among the largest players, record keeping remains a scale business, especially for companies facing financial challenges when competing against the industry’s giants, said Bill Ryan, a former long-time DC plan consultant for NEPC who joined Carlyle Group in January as managing director and head of retirement solutions.

Record keepers are expanding their services to retain existing clients and attract new ones, responding to ongoing pressure from plan sponsors, many of which are conducting searches and reviews this year.

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DC consultant Michael Contorno said sponsors are focusing more on a “value for service lens — what services are they getting for what they’re paying” — than on new investments when issuing RFPs.

Their goal is: “Let’s pick a record keeper who is best for us, and the cost will work itself out,” said Contorno, principal and head of DC vendor management at NEPC.

Record keepers need improved technology to increase plan efficiency, reduce costs and provide better communication to participants. However, helping participants save more “is not solved only by technology,” Contorno said. “This is a people business. You need a strong service team.”

The proposed Department of Labor rule on private market investments in DC plans won’t have much impact on record keepers, according to some industry experts, but record-keeping executives say they will need time to review the 56 pages of fine print published in the Federal Register before making official comments.

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“Most record keepers can already administer these strategies within existing platforms when packaged appropriately,” said Michael Contorno principal and head of DC vendor management at the NEPC consulting firm, referring to liquidity and daily net asset value.

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Even though the DOL safe harbor proposal “reduces fiduciary uncertainty,” the heavy lifting belongs to asset managers, who must solve for things like liquidity, daily net asset valuation and cost “particularly in a DC system built on daily liquidity,” Contorno said.

While the drumbeat grows for incorporating alternatives into defined contribution plans, consulting firms are split on whether to include those investments in their pooled employer plans — some are holding off despite mounting pressure from the industry while others have already begun adding private real estate and infrastructure to those plans.

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On March 16, NEPC became the latest investment consultant to announce it was launching a PEP, allowing unrelated businesses to join together in a single, shared DC plan.

NEPC’s plan — Stratum One — will be available beginning May 1.

Mikaylee O’Connor, partner and DC team leader at NEPC said in an interview earlier this month that the firm has “spent decades advising plan sponsors on best practices in governance, investments, and fees, and the timing felt right to apply that experience within a PEP structure as the market continues to mature.” NEPC has $1.9 trillion in assets under advisement.

One asset class that won’t be part of NEPC’s PEP, at least initially, is alternatives.

“We believe adoption (of alternatives) should be thoughtful and deliberate,” O’Connor said. “Our approach is to prioritize simplicity, transparency, and cost efficiency — particularly important considerations for pooled plans with diverse participating employers and participant demographics.”

She noted the firm will continue to monitor regulatory developments, market innovation, and evolving best practices, and “may consider private or alternative investments in the future where they clearly enhance participant outcomes and can be implemented in a fiduciary‑prudent manner.”

In January, Sarah Samuels was promoted to chief investment officer at NEPC, a Boston-based investment consulting firm with $1.9 trillion in assets under advisement.

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“The power of capital is tremendous, and the work that we do truly changes lives,” she says, from helping parents save for their children’s college educations to making sure retirees can live comfortably.

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She says “nonlinear careers‘’ are valuable—she was a German major at the University of New Hampshire and earned an M.B.A. at Boston University. “I encourage people to take some risks with their careers because careers are pretty resilient, and the risks will pay off.”

In Greek mythology, the goddess Athena offered guidance and mentorship during periods of uncertainty and transition. The people on Barron’s 2026 list of the 100 Most Influential Women in U.S. Finance are modern-day Athenas, helping their firms, clients, investors, and in some cases, the country, through a period of unusual geopolitical, technological, and economic flux.

Wealthy families are abandoning the traditional 60/40 portfolio for a new allocation model — one that devotes 30% to alternatives, from private equity and infrastructure to hedge funds and secondaries. As multifamily offices enter 2026, they’re betting that differentiated returns lie in private markets, not public ones, and they’re building portfolios with longer time horizons and less liquidity to match.