Ascensus, Inc.

Ascensus, Inc.
Industry Financial Services
Founded 1975 (1975)
Headquarters Dresher, PA, United States
Products retirement plans; 529 plans; individual retirement accounts; health savings accounts
Website http://www.ascensus.com

Ascensus, Inc., founded in 1975 and based in Dresher, PA,[1] is a back-office administrator for financial investment firms (offering retirement and college savings plans) and for banking institutions (offering health savings accounts and IRAs).[2]

Ascensus provides record-keeping, administrative, and program management services. The company does not offer investment advice.[3]

Ascensus is one of the largest independently operated retirement plan service providers in the United States,[4] servicing more than 40,000 retirement plans through various partnerships. The company is focused on giving small businesses the same access to retirement and savings benefits as large-scale corporations.[5] Current institutional partners include LPL Financial, Merrill Lynch, and The Vanguard Group, among others.[6]

History & Ownership

In 2012, Ascensus acquired ExpertPlan, a New Jersey-based firm.[7]

In 2013, Ascensus acquired Upromise Investments, Sallie Mae’s 529 college savings plan administrator.[8] This positioned the company to grow within the 529 plan space and resulted in the formation of its Ascensus College Savings division.

In 2015, Ascensus was offered for sale by private equity investment firm JC Flowers.[9] In the fourth quarter of 2015, the company was acquired by Genstar Capital and Aquiline Capital Partners.[10]

Also in 2015, Ascensus College Savings was selected to manage the Rhode Island state 529 plan, CollegeBoundfund, in partnership with Invesco.[11] In 2016, Ascensus College Savings partnered with Wealthfront, an automated investment service, to provide the state of Nevada with a 529 savings plan. This marks the first plan of this type to use an automated investment service.[12]

In the health savings space, the company partnered with Devenir in June 2016 to provide a private-labeled health savings account investment platform to banks and credit unions.[13]

Ascensus was ranked on the Inc. 5000 for 2015, for 93% growth and revenues of $275M.[14]

Organization

In 2014, the company reorganized into two business divisions, one serving college savings and one serving retirement savings. Both divisions are under the oversight of Bob Guillocheau, president and CEO. Shannon Kelly is president of the retirement division and Jeff Howkins is president of the college savings division.[15]

References

  1. ↑ "Ascensus | NYBA". www.nyba.com. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
  2. ↑ "Ascensus and Devenir Partner to Offer Health Savings Account (HSA) Investments - Devenir". 2016-06-17. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
  3. ↑ "Servant leadership in a financial crisis". Retrieved 2016-08-19.
  4. ↑ "Financial Advisors Expand Retirement Plan Options, Expert Says". www.fa-mag.com. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
  5. ↑ "A Partner in the Field | PLANADVISER". www.planadviser.com. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
  6. ↑ "Ascensus Back on the Block - NAPA Net". 2015-05-12. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
  7. ↑ "ExpertPlan, Ascensus in Merger Agreement | PLANADVISER". www.planadviser.com. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
  8. ↑ "Ascensus Enters into Agreement to Acquire 529 Plan Administration Business from Sallie Mae | Sallie Mae Online Newsroom". news.salliemae.com. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
  9. ↑ "Ascensus Back on the Block - NAPA Net". 2015-05-12. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
  10. ↑ "Genstar Capital". news.gencap.com. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
  11. ↑ "Rhode Island Selects Ascensus College Savings and Invesco for CollegeBoundfund College Savings Program | Business Wire". www.businesswire.com. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
  12. ↑ Wealthfront. "Wealthfront To Launch 529 College Savings Plan In Partnership With The State Of Nevada And Ascensus College Savings". www.prnewswire.com. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
  13. ↑ "Ascensus and Devenir Partner to Offer Health Savings Account (HSA) Investments - Devenir". 2016-06-17. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
  14. ↑ "The Inc. 5000 2015, America's fastest-growing companies". Inc.com. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
  15. ↑ "Structural Shakeup at Ascensus | PLANSPONSOR". www.plansponsor.com. Retrieved 2016-08-19.

External links

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