Benefits industry newsmakers: New York Life, Creative Planning, AIG, ConnectYourCare, Solovis
AmWINS Group, Voya, Greatland Corporation, Alegeus, United Claim Solutions/Valenz, Amalgamated Life Insurance, Keenan, Wellbeats & more.
Here’s the latest on new hires, promotions, partnerships, M&As, and more, in the retirement and employee benefits industry.
Willis Towers Watson announced it has entered into an agreement with Syndio to create a solution to better enable organizations to address issues related to pay equity and fair pay.
Wellbeats announced it has received SOC 2 Type 1 Certification from the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, confirming the company is compliant with industry best practices for its non-financial systems and processes that safeguard the security and confidentiality of the Wellbeats fitness platform and all related data.
Voya Financial announced that Charlie Nelson, CEO of Retirement and Employee Benefits at Voya Financial, is being appointed to the board of directors of the Defined Contribution Alternatives Association (DCALTA), a nonprofit organization that provides education about the benefits of including alternative investments within a defined contribution framework.
The United Claim Solutions Family of Companies announced its new name: Vālenz. The Valenz ecosystem includes Vālenz Care (formerly Inetico); Vālenz Access (formerly NX Health Network); Vālenz Claim (formerly United Claim Solutions); and Vālenz Assurance (formerly Zebu Compliance Solutions).
Solovis, a multi-asset class portfolio management, analytics and reporting platform announced it has partnered with UC Investments, the investment office overseeing the University of California’s $125 billion multi-asset class investment portfolio, including its endowment, pension, retirement savings plan and working capital. The partnership is the result of a one-year effort by UC Investments to overhaul its legacy technology and transition to a holistic and agile platform.
Purchasing Power announced that Joseph (“Trey”) Loughran has been appointed as the company’s CEO. Loughran succeeds Richard Carrano, who has served as a senior executive of the company for 18 years and CEO since 2011. Carrano will continue to serve as a member of the board of directors and as an advisor to the company. Loughran joins from Red Ventures, where he was President of Bankrate.com. He will be based in Atlanta and report directly to the Purchasing Power Board of Directors.
Prudential Financial announced it has completed its acquisition of Assurance IQ, Inc., “Assurance.” Under the terms of the acquisition, announced on September 5, 2019, Assurance becomes a wholly owned subsidiary of Prudential.
Principal Financial Group is partnering with EIS Group to provide individual disability products on the EIS Group platform. The partnership also enables the use of new technology, such as API-based capabilities, that will ultimately enable straight-through underwriting, the company says.
The PNC Financial Services Group and M Financial Group announced an agreement to offer insurance solutions, advice and service to PNC’s Wealth Management and Hawthorn, PNC Family Wealth, clients. PNC will implement a new service model in which insurance strategists will serve as the main point of contact for clients. Similarly, M Financial will create a dedicated team who will assist member firms and PNC insurance strategists in placing business.
PartnerRe Ltd. announced that Mario Bonaccorso, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, will retire on March 31, 2020. He will be succeeded by Nicolas Burnet on February 3, 2020. The company also announced Andrew Gibbs as Executive Vice President and Chief Operations Officer, effective October 14, 2019. Burnet and Gibbs will be located in the company’s headquarters in Bermuda.
OneDigital announced two promotions to its C-suite: Bill Carew, formerly Executive Vice President of Sales and Operations, was promoted to Chief Operating Officer (COO), and Elizabeth Chrane, formerly Executive Vice President of Corporate Culture and Development, was promoted to Chief People Officer (CPO).
New York Life announced that Eric Feldstein has been named Executive Vice President and CFO, reporting to Chairman and CEO Ted Mathas. Feldstein joins from Health Care Service Corporation, where he was CFO. He replaces Joel Steinberg, who was serving as interim CFO following the retirement of the company’s former CFO John Fleurant earlier this year.
New York Life will have a float in the 93rd Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade. “Toy House of Marvelous Milestones” will feature a gold turret, a tribute to the gold peak at the top of the company’s home office, a National Historic Landmark in Manhattan. The company celebrates 175 years in business in 2020.
Keenan announced that Troy Butzlaff has joined its Municipalities Practice team as a Consulting Senior Advisor. Butzlaff will represent one of Keenan’s strategic partners, MidAmerica, a Florida-based company that specializes in delivering health reimbursement and retirement benefit solutions to the public sector.
Innovator Capital Management announced the successful completion of the initial outcome period for the October Series of Innovator S&P 500 Buffer ETFs. The S&P 500 Buffer ETF October Series was reset on October 1, 2019, based on the current level for the S&P Price Return Index, with new upside caps and downside buffers for the next one-year outcome period.
Hub International announced that it has acquired the assets of Doug Johnson Insurance, LLC. Headquartered in Gainesville, Florida, it is an independent insurance agency providing personal, commercial and employee benefits solutions to clients. CEO/President Doug Johnson is a former NFL football player. Johnson and the Doug Johnson Insurance team will be joining Hub Florida.
Greatland Corporation, the Michigan-based W-2, 1099 and 1095 specialist, announced the acquisition of JAT Software, which provides year-end reporting software, web applications and print services for U.S. and Canadian organizations with high-volume reporting needs. Greatland indicated that all 15 current JAT employees will join Greatland and continue to be based out of the current New Jersey office. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Event registration and technology provider eventcore announced the hire of April Halm as compliance and data privacy manager. She previously served in compliance at AT&T in Atlanta.
Creative Planning announced the acquisition of America’s Best 401k. As the current 3(38) investment fiduciary and RIA for America’s Best 401k, Creative Planning has in-depth knowledge of the firm’s clients. America’s Best 401k founder and President Tom Zgainer will remain in his current role. Creative Planning has over 650 employees with clients in all 50 states.
ConnectYourCare announced a strategic partnership with TouchCare. The partnership provides ConnectYourCare clients the option to supplement their tax-advantaged benefits with dedicated TouchCare personal assistance. TouchCare’s concierge service—which helps address common scenarios such as bill review and negotiation, care coordination, and open enrollment support—extends to ConnectYourCare’s health savings account (HSA), flexible spending account (FSA), and health reimbursement arrangement (HRA) health care offerings, as well as the company’s commuter and COBRA administration solutions.
Brightway Insurance has been recognized by Florida Trend on its list of the 225 Biggest Private Companies based on revenue. Brightway ranks 110th on Florida Trend’s list this year – up seven spots from its ranking in 2018.
AmWINS Group announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Stealth Partner Group, an Arizona-based, independent full-service general agent specializing in medical stop-loss insurance. In early 2020, Stealth will combine with Stop Loss Insurance Services (“SLIS”), an AmWINS Group company. Operating under the Stealth brand and led by Patricia Berridge and Harley Barnes, the combined firm will be part of AmWINS’ Group Benefits division.
American International Group (AIG) announced that John Panagakis has been elected as CEO of First Principles Capital Management, the unit of AIG Investments that serves institutional clients. Panagakis joins FPCM from TIAA Nuveen, where most recently he was Executive Vice President, Head of International Advisory Services. He will be based in New York and report to Douglas Dachille, Executive Vice President and Chief Investment Officer of AIG.
Amalgamated Life Insurance Company announced three appointments:
- Erin Linney - Marketing Director
- Bruce Van Ryn - Sales Executive, Voluntary Worksite Products (Michigan, Indiana, Wisconsin, Minnesota, South Dakota, North Dakota)
- Howard Gertner – Sales Executive, Voluntary Worksite Products (Colorado, Nevada, Utah, Montana, Wyoming, Nebraska, Idaho, Missouri, Arizona)
Alegeus announced that it will be using the month of October to educate consumers on the value of HSAs, in addition to joining the industry in support of National HSA Awareness Day on October 15. It also launched an educational consumer website, www.wealthcare.com, which offers resources including a savings calculator, a quiz to help consumers find the best plans for them, and videos on how to choose the best plans.
AARP Foundation launched MySavingsJar, an online resource developed to help older adults and their families take small, achievable steps to save money. The free program offers social support, resources and expert coaching to help people save and achieve more control over their expenses.
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