Companies Improve 529 Plan
New York Life Investment Management of Parsippany, N.J., and Schoolhouse Capital of Boston have improved the CollegeSense 529 Higher Education Savings Plan.
Enhancements include the addition of the Salomon Brothers Investors Value Fund to many of CollegeSense‚s investment portfolios and the introduction of Dual Track Investing–which can aid investors in achieving more customized asset allocations. A B-share class also has been introduced, and pricing has been revamped on A and C shares to offer higher, mutual-fund-type compensation and more flexibility for financial planners.
New York Life distributes College Sense plans. Schoolhouse Capital, a subsidiary of State Street Corp., provides financial services to educational institutions, parents and foundations. CollegeSense is available to all U.S. residents and is sponsored by The Education Trust Board of New Mexico. For more information, visit www.collegesense.com or call (866) 529-SENSE.
Annuity Company Formed
Sun Life Financial and MFS Investment Management have established an annuity distribution organization based in Wellesley Hills, Mass.
Called MFS/Sun Life Financial Distributors Inc., the new company plans to improve distribution of MFS and Sun Life Financial annuity products and increase sales and assets under management. The annuity distribution areas of MFS Fund Distributors Inc. and Sun Life of Canada (U.S.) Distributors Inc. were combined to form the organization. MFS is a member of the Sun Life Financial group of companies.
Statement One‚s Services Tapped
NFP Securities in New York has signed an agreement to integrate StatementOne‚s consolidated Web-based portfolio accounting and performance reporting system into its technology infrastructure. For more information, contact David Z. Orban, StatementOne‚s vice president of marketing, at (609) 806-0227.
Seminar Boot Camp
Investors Capital Corp. of Lynnfield, Mass., is holding a series of two-day workshops to help its 1,000-plus independent brokers plan and implement successful seminars to attract new clients. The "Seminar Boot Camp" program, which debuted in February, coaches the firm‚s independent brokers on how to target markets and improve presentation skills to attract potential clients.
"We‚ve found on average that seven out of ten of our top producers boosted their new client business in the past year as a direct result of incorporating seminars into their business model," says Ted Charles, chairman and chief executive officer of Investors Capital Holdings, the parent company of Investors Capital Corp. "When implemented correctly, seminars can be a highly effective way for our brokers to reach hundreds of prospects each year, increase their presence in local communities and enhance their stature as knowledgeable financial professionals with their existing clients."
Upcoming seminar dates at the home office include April 24-25, August 14-15 and November 12-13. For more information, please call (800) 949-1422 or visit www.investorscapital.com.
Manager Signed
Transamerica Investment Man-agement of Los Angeles has been hired to manage a large-cap growth separate account portfolio for Lockwood Financial Services in Malvern, Pa. Bank One in Columbus, Ohio, and Envestnet PMC in Chicago also have chosen the firm to manage large-cap growth portfolios in their separate account programs.
New Shares Introduced
ABN AMRO/Chicago Capital Growth Fund has introduced C- and R-class shares, and the firm‚s Montag & Caldwell Growth Fund is offering R-class shares. C shares offer a level load, while R shares are for the 401(k) market. For more information, call (800) 597-9704 or visit www.advisor.abnamrofunds.com.
AMEX Firm Offers New Products
IDS Life Insurance Co., a Minneapolis-based subsidiary of American Express Co., has introduced two new life insurance products–American Express Variable Universal Life IV and American Express Life Protection Select. The new products include longer death benefit guarantees, lower internal costs and added flexibility.