Pershing's open architecture design also means that other of the industry's 529 college savings plans and fund managers will be added to the platform over time. Pershing will also expand its platform 529 plan offerings in 2013, currently working with BlackRock, ING as well as John Hancock and T. Rowe Price, partner companies that are jointly developing a 529 plan, says Pershing's Cirrotti.
Meanwhile, Dosmann says all 12,000 of Edward Jones financial advisors will be promoting 529 plans to their investor clients. The company plans to add between three to five more plans to its CollegeAmerica platform in 2013.
With faster 529 platforms, financial advisors may be enticed to add a 529 plan to their bag of client service offerings. And by promoting them, advisors may raise clients' 529 plan awareness level.
"We're banking on it," says Dosmann. "This is the direction that broker-sold 529 plan business will be headed in the future. We wouldn't be adding three to five more plans next year if we didn't believe that."
-Jim McConville