Stadion Retirement Exceeds $1 Billion in QDIA Assets

WATKINSVILLE, Ga., Oct. 30 /PRNewswire/ -- Stadion Retirement announces that as of mid-September, 2009, it has added more than $1 Billion in managed account assets as a Qualified Default Investment Alternative (QDIA). QDIA, created by the Pension Protection Act of 2006, allows a plan sponsor to default participants' assets into a managed account, lifecycle fund, or balanced fund.

Stadion's managed account QDIA was the first to market in July of 2007, and its strategy has proven attractive to plan sponsors and plan participants, not only because of solid long term results, but because preserving assets has become crucial in the current volatile markets.

Having 401(k) assets professionally managed for them by an independent advisory firm focusing on protection of assets when the market is declining and asset growth when it is rising makes sense to employees who emphatically do not want to manage their own money.

"Plan sponsors and plan participants view Stadion's QDIA as adding important value that can impact their life savings and preparation for retirement," says Tim McCabe, Stadion Retirement. "When employees are defaulted into a managed account, we can help them get on track for a successful and secure retirement," he says.

In addition, the misuse and damaging performance of lifecycle funds has made Stadion's QDIA a popular alternative. In the name of diversification, 401(k) plan participants sometimes divide their assets into several different lifecycle funds, thereby circumventing the purpose of the funds, which is to provide age-appropriate portfolios by adjusting risk as participants move toward retirement. Using them incorrectly can have the reverse effect, increasing market risk exposure.

Stadion's unique money management style has led to several live television interviews and marketplace recognition that there are times when the focus must shift to preservation of assets to avoid the deep losses that often destroy years of savings.