Vestwell, the employer and individual savings platform, announced Tuesday it had been selected by New Jersey to be the program administrator for the state’s Secure Choice Savings Program.
The partnership with the New Jersey Secure Choice Savings Board will provide residents access to the voluntary, state-facilitated retirement program through their employers, according to the company. Vestwell, in partnership with BNY Mellon, will provide the platform, recordkeeping, custodial services and customer support. The New Jersey pilot program will begin in 2024, followed by a phased rollout that kicks off later in the year.
New Jersey now represents Vestwell’s seventh such state partnership, which started with OregonSaves in 2017. Since then, around $1 billion has been saved by residents of these states.
In August, Vestwell announced they were set to administer the nation’s first multi-state retirement program, using Colorado's existing auto-IRA functionality as the framework for Maine. A pilot for the Maine program will launch in late 2023, aiming to eventually offer about 40% of private-sector state employees the chance to access workplace retirement accounts through an auto-IRA option. Maine will have segregated assets and its own customized platform separate from Colorado's.
As it stands now, Vestwell is the only company that launched any state auto-IRA programs since 2021. It administers more than 30 programs across numerous states, that include both auto-IRAs and 529 college savings plans. It was originally founded in 2016 and is led by CEO Aaron Schumm (one of WealthManagement.com’s “Ten To Watch” in 2017).