Reduced fiduciary liability
Wilshire accepts fiduciary responsibility for fund selection and replacement, taking that burden off your plate.
Enhancement Coming August 19
Your future deserves more than set-it-and-forget-it.
We've engaged Wilshire Advisors, an independent investment fiduciary, to review and uplevel your plan's investment lineup. Rather than a long list of index funds left on autopilot, Wilshire's investment team conducts an ongoing review, making decisions to improve returns, manage downside risk, reduce complexity, and lower participant costs. There's nothing you have to do for this change.
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What it means for you as an employer.
Your plan's legacy investment menu included a large number of overlapping retail index funds, all from a single fund company, Vanguard. This added complexity, cost, and potential liability risks without necessarily adding diversification for you and your employees participating in the plan. Wilshire completed an independent review and rebuilt the lineup into a simpler, three-tier structure designed to reduce complexity and help participants make more informed investment decisions. What's staying the same:
- Your plan's structure, provider, and service fees
- Your plan design and existing service agreement
- Your team's ability to work with Vestwell support
What’s changing.
Having an Investment Manager like Wilshire means they carry full discretionary authority over investment selection, which reduces your fiduciary liability. You don't need to select or replace funds; Wilshire handles that on your behalf, and is legally accountable for those decisions.
- A streamlined three-tier fund menu, replacing the legacy lineup
- Lower-cost funds across major asset classes for your participants
- Addition of actively managed funds, for those looking for professional fund management
- Access to institutional share classes previously available only to larger plans
- To realign everyone with the new investment options, all employees will be re-enrolled in your plan’s default investment election that you selected during registration with Vestwell. Wilshire determined that re-enrollment, rather than mapping existing balances into the closest fund in the new lineup, is most efficient as it:
- Helps everyone benefit from the improved, lower-cost investment options
- Provides access to professional management designed to support long-term retirement outcomes
- Creates a simpler, more consistent approach that is easier to understand and manage
Low costs for your employees
The new core index funds cost 40 to 69% less than the legacy retail Vanguard funds they replace, at no additional cost to you.
Simplified structure
A three-tier structure replaces a long, overlapping fund list, making it easier for you to explain your plan's investment options to employees and for participants to make informed investment decisions.
Institutional pricing, at any plan size
Wilshire's scale brings your participants access to Collective Investment Trusts (CITs) with institutional pricing typically reserved for much larger retirement plans.
More personalized options for your workforce
Goal-based investing is available as an option for your plan's default or as an added feature, giving employees access to more personalized asset allocation tools based on their financial goals.
Ongoing, active oversight
Wilshire is responsible for selecting, monitoring, and replacing investment options when appropriate, helping keep the lineup focused on participant outcomes.
See what's in your plan's new lineup.
Your plan's investments are now organized into three tiers, giving your employees a clear path based on how involved they want to be:
Tier 1. Professionally Managed: Age-Based or Goal-Based Investing
Professionally managed target date funds and goal-based managed accounts for participants who want a pre-built, less hands-on investment approach.
Tier 2. Risk-Based Investing: Choose Your Risk Level
Professionally selected risk-based models where participants can select how much risk they want to take on while not having to select underlying holdings.
Tier 3. Build It Yourself: Invest on Your Own
A range of index-tracking and actively managed funds for participants who prefer to choose and manage their own investment allocations.
Why are all employees being re-enrolled?
Wilshire has determined that a more streamlined, low-cost, and better-diversified lineup is more suitable and appropriate for your plan. As part of this change all employees will be re-enrolled in their plan’s default investment election (Target-Date Funds or Goals-Based Investing) that the plan sponsor selected when the plan transitioned from Accrue to Vestwell. Because the plan’s investment lineup is being significantly updated, nearly all accounts will experience changes. For this reason, this re-enrollment applies to all employees to ensure a consistent and effective approach: - Helps everyone benefit from the streamlined, low-cost investment options - Provides access to professional management designed to support long-term retirement outcomes - Creates a simpler, more consistent approach that is easier to understand and manage Your employees will always retain full control over their account and can make changes at any time after August 19, 2026.
Investment Lineup Webinar
Guided support through the investment lineup change.
There is no action required on your part. We are hosting optional live sessions each week to help you understand what's evolving in your plan and how to talk about it with your employees. Sessions begin July 21st for you and August 12th for your employees. Be on the lookout for registration emails. Who is this for? Employers who want to understand the Wilshire lineup change and its impact on their plan. Key topics: - Why the lineup is changing and what Wilshire's role is as your plan's investment fiduciary - Walkthrough of the new three-tier structure - What to expect on and after August 19th - Live Q&A with our team (Can't make it live? A recording will be posted here for on-demand viewing.)
Now through August 19:
No action is needed. We will be notifying your employees directly starting July 15, 2026. We recommend reviewing the FAQs, attending one of our live webinar sessions, and exploring the new investment line up details.
August 19:
Your plan's new investment lineup goes into effect. Participant elections and balances are mapped according to your plan's selected default investment option (QDIA).
After August 19:
Participants can log in anytime to review or update their investment elections.
If you've selected goal-based investing as your plan's default
Employees will be analyzed by the engine using their age, compensation and current balance (where available) and assigned an appropriate asset allocation.
If you've selected age-based investing (target date funds) as your default
Goal-based investing remains available as an added feature for any employee who wants it
Subsequently, employees can engage with the tool
Providing more information such as their retirement income goal, outside assets, social security, etc. As they provide more information, the engine can refine their allocation and, when needed, reallocate them into a different model. If they’re off track relative to their stated goal, it may also surface suggestions such as saving more, retiring later, or lowering their retirement income goal.
Transparent Fee
You pay no additional fee for offering goal-based investing. Employees who are enrolled in the service are charged a 0.35% Managed Account Platform fee. This is calculated using their average daily balance for the days that they are enrolled in the service. It is calculated and deducted from the account monthly and shown on their statement, in addition to the underlying fund expense ratios. Employees who prefer a target date fund, a risk model, or a custom allocation are not charged a managed account fee.
Ready to see the details?
Explore fund fact sheets, performance data, and expense ratios for every option in your plan's new lineup.
Meet Wilshire
Introducing Wilshire Advisors.
Vestwell has engaged Wilshire Advisors to serve as your plan's investment fiduciary. In this role, Wilshire takes on full discretionary authority and fiduciary responsibility for selecting, monitoring, and, when appropriate, replacing the investment options in your plan.
- Founded in 1972
- Partners with 300+ institutional investors and financial intermediaries globally
- Oversees $1.5+ trillion in assets, including $1+ trillion for retirement plan clients
- Fully independent, not affiliated with Vestwell or your prior provider
FAQs
Wilshire Advisors is an independent, third-party investment fiduciary for your plan. In that role, Wilshire is responsible for selecting, monitoring, and replacing your plan's investment options. Wilshire was founded in 1972, has served defined contribution plans since 1981, partners with 300+ institutional investors globally, and oversees $1.5+ trillion in assets.
No. Wilshire Advisors is a fully independent third-party fiduciary, not affiliated with Vestwell, Accrue, or Guideline. Their independence and their fiduciary role means they are obligated to act in your employees’ best interests when selecting and monitoring investments.
No. The entity providing investment oversight has changed from Guideline Investments to Wilshire Advisors, but your plan's fees for investment services remain exactly as outlined in your service agreement. Wilshire is compensated from the fees for Vestwell’s services. The investment lineup change Wilshire implemented will reduce the fund-level expenses for your participants.
Having an investment manager like Wilshire means they have full authority over investment selection. This significantly reduces your fiduciary liability as the plan sponsor. You do not need to select or replace funds.
Wilshire, as your independent investment fiduciary, completed its review of the investment options that were available to your plan when it was supported by Guideline and determined that a lineup redesign will benefit your employees. The Guideline lineup included a large number of overlapping funds, creating unnecessary complexity and higher costs. In short, this lineup change is Wilshire doing exactly what it was engaged to do, enabling your employees to make informed decisions about their investments.
Employees will receive advance notice of the lineup change. Their assets will be mapped based on your plan's selected qualified default investment alternative (QDIA). Employees who want to make different investments elections can do so anytime after August 19th.