State retirement systems increased their holdings by 10.7 percent in 2010, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. They had $2.2 trillion in cash and investment holdings, an increase of $213.9 billion from 2009. This followed a $610.8 billion loss the previous year.

Employers are becoming increasingly concerned about employees ability to save for retirement, prompting many of them to rethink their retirement benefits plan strategies and assist their employees in better preparing for retirement.

Many Baby Boomers are cashing in life insurance policies to help pay for retirement. These transactions are called life settlements, and they have become popular in recent years as an alternative retirement vehicle.

Women continue to lag behind men when it comes to overall financial and retirement planning, so plan sponsors and financial services companies need to do a better job of helping them do both.

Paychex, Inc., has launched a new offering for fee-based financial advisors, called Paychex Advisor Select401(k).

The exchange-traded fund industry needs to develop new products and get better at educating investors about ETFs, said Vanguard Chief Investment Officer Gus Sauter, speaking at the IndexUniverse conference.

A recent study of Generation X and younger Baby Boomers has found that only one-third are very confident of having enough money to live on during retirement, cover medical expenses and pay for their childrens higher education.

Despite a slow rebound by the economy, many employees continue to be concerned about their ability to retire and are taking steps to get their financial houses in order.