Defined Contribution Plans: Approaches in Other Countries Offer Beneficial Strategies in Several Areas

摘要

Service providers play important roles in the U.S. defined contribution (DC) retirement system since they provide services, such as administration and fund management, necessary for operating DC plans. Plan sponsors rely on such providers, yet it is unclear how much participants are paying in fees for these services. Other countries with well-established DC systems face similar issues and some use a variety of approaches to oversee DC plans and service providers and actively focus on fees charged to participants. GAO was asked to examine, for selected countries DC systems, (1) how are service providers overseen by regulatory agencies; (2) what key strategies are used to improve fee disclosure to participants; and (3) what key strategies are used to reduce fees. GAO selected Australia, Chile, Sweden and the United Kingdom based on, among other factors, the importance of the DC plans to the country's retirement system and the use of strategies to address service providers fees.