Vantagepoint’s PLUS Fund Selected as the Teachers’ Retirement System of the State of Illinois Stable Value Option
Washington, D.C., Nov. 30, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ICMA-RC is pleased to announce that the Vantagepoint PLUS Fund has been chosen as the capital preservation option for the new 457(b) plan sponsored by the Teachers’ Retirement System (TRS) of the State of Illinois. TRS, one of the largest teachers’ retirement systems in the United States, provides retirement benefits for teachers who are employed at all Illinois public common and charter school districts located outside the city of Chicago. There are more than 160,000 employees within the State’s plan who will be eligible to invest in the Vantagepoint PLUS Fund upon the launch of the plan in 2021.
"We are excited to continue our partnership with TRS and assist in the launch of the new 457(b) Supplemental Savings Plan," said Emily Wrightson, Vice President at Cammack Retirement Group, the System's consultant. "A stable value fund serves to protect participants against a decline in net asset value and offers a smoother return profile. In conjunction with TRS, we underwent a rigorous due diligence process to evaluate and select each option offered in the array with the goal of enabling employees to construct a well-diversified portfolio."
The Vantagepoint PLUS Fund seeks to preserve capital, by limiting the risk of loss of principal and delivering stable returns, and to meet the liquidity needs of those who invest in the Fund. ICMA-RC believes this stable value option will provide benefits to TRS and its employees through asset growth and a favorable risk-return ratio.
“We are honored that the Teachers’ Retirement System of the State of Illinois has selected ICMA-RC’s Vantagepoint PLUS stable value fund as the capital preservation option for its new 457 plan. Since our founding as a non-profit close to 50 years ago, our mission has been to offer the public sector best in class retirement plans, investments and advice,” said ICMA-RC’s Senior Vice President, Orlando Cruz. “We know that many state-adopted, defined- contribution plans are facing increased stress, and we are proud to offer an investment option that is a top performer over a 1, 3, 5- and 10-year time period1. Our ultimate goal is to help TRS employees build retirement security as they plan for and are in retirement.”
A factor in why ICMA-RC was chosen is the firm’s belief and commitment to diversity and inclusion, which has been shown to lead to different perspectives and can produce better outcomes2. The company employs a diverse workforce, with 59% of the organization represented by minorities. Additionally, women represent 53% of the organization’s senior leadership team, holding key positions in finance, technology, compliance, legal affairs and the CEO3.
About ICMA-RC
Founded in 1972, ICMA-RC is a non-profit, independent financial services corporation with approximately $63 billion in assets under management and administration (as of September 30, 2020), focused on providing retirement plans and related services for over 1.5 million public participant accounts. ICMA-RC’s mission is to help those who serve their communities work towards achieving their retirement savings goals. For more information, visit www.icmarc.org, download ICMA-RC’s mobile app from the App Store® and Google PlayTM or follow ICMA-RC on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.
PLUS Fund Disclosure
The Vantagepoint PLUS Fund is an investment option of VantageTrust, a group trust established and maintained by VantageTrust Company, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of ICMA-RC. VantageTrust provides for the commingling of assets of certain trusts and plans as described in its Declaration of Trust, and is only available for investment by such eligible trusts and plans. The Fund is not a mutual fund. Its units are not deposits of VantageTrust Company and are not insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other agency. The Fund is a security that has not been registered under the Securities Act of 1933 and is exempt from investment company registration under the Investment Company Act of 1940. For additional information regarding the Fund, including a description of the principal risks, please consult the Fund’s Disclosure Memorandum, which is available when plan administration clients log in at www.icmarc.org, at www.vantagepointfunds.org for institutions, or upon request by calling 800-669-7400.
Before investing, please read the applicable Fund Fact Sheet(s) and the Fund’s Disclosure Memorandum carefully for a complete summary of all fees, expenses, investment objectives and strategies, and risks. This information is available when plan administration clients log in at www.icmarc.org, at www.vantagepointfunds.org for institutions, or upon request by calling 800-669-7400. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.
The Vantagepoint PLUS Fund is a top performing fund in the Hueler Analytics Stable Value Pooled Fund Comparative Universe which represents the performance returns of actual stable value pooled funds, and its Index is the stable value industry benchmark used by many institutional investors, consultants, advisors and plan sponsors for monitoring stable value pooled funds. Universe percentiles are derived by ICMA-RC from data provided by Hueler Analytics, Inc., a technology and research firm covering stable value products that is not affiliated with ICMA-RC. ICMA-RC does not independently verify Hueler Analytics, Inc. data. Gross returns used in the Universe and in the ranking do not include plan administration fees, adviser expenses, or other stable value fund costs. Actual performance experienced by participants would be commensurately lower. The highest (or most favorable) percentile rank is 1 and the lowest (or least favorable) percentile rank is 100. The top-performing fund in a category will always receive a rank of 1. As of September 30, 2020, the universe contained 16 funds with 1-year returns, 16 funds with 3-year returns, 16 funds with 5-year returns, and 14 funds with 10-year returns.
When the Vantagepoint PLUS Fund is marketed to institutional clients by our Investment Only (IO) team, the Fund is offered by ICMA-RC Services, LLC (RC Services), an SEC registered broker-dealer and FINRA member firm. RC Services is a wholly owned subsidiary of ICMA-RC and is an affiliate of VantageTrust Company, LLC and Vantagepoint Investment Advisers, LLC.
1 See disclosures at the end of this article regarding Hueler.
2 How Diverse Teams Produce Better Outcomes, Why Diverse Teams Are Smarter
3 As of September 30, 2020
CONTACT: Aprile Pritchet ICMA-RC 202-962-8067 apritchet@icmarc.org
