The agreement continues the national expansion of AmericanTCS’s outsourcing services with the addition of Touchstone Retirement Group’s deep knowledge in fiduciary and administrative services, plan design and recordkeeping solutions.
PITTSBURGH, PA (BUSINESS WIRE) — EdgeCo Holdings LP (“EdgeCo”), a leading provider of best-in-class solutions for financial intermediaries and their clients, announced today that it has entered into a definitive agreement with Touchstone Retirement Group, LLC and its affiliates TRG Fiduciary Services and TRG Administrative Services (“TRG”) to become part of its AmericanTCS outsourcing business unit. Encompassing all of the trust custody and retirement operations EdgeCo has acquired since 2018, AmericanTCS is currently comprised of American Trust Retirement, American Trust Wealth, Mid Atlantic Trust Company and American Technology Automation.
The transaction reflects a continued commitment by EdgeCo and its subsidiaries to provide best-in-class retirement solutions to the small and mid-sized retirement plan market and the advisors and intermediaries that serve them. The agreement with TRG represents the eighth transaction by EdgeCo in the retirement space, with additional acquisitions planned as part of the growth strategy going forward.
TRG offers a suite of products designed to simplify the fiduciary and administrative responsibilities for 401(k) plan sponsors, including Pooled Employer Plans (PEP) Plans, fiduciary outsourcing services, plan design, annual compliance & testing, and recordkeeping.
Headquartered in Buffalo, NY, with sales offices in Atlanta, GA and Dallas, TX, TRG provides services to hundreds of retirement plans in over thirty states. Founded in 2011 by Jonathan Duggan, Paul Duggan, Ken Neward, and Joseph Zdarsky, Touchstone Retirement Group quickly established itself as a premier retirement plan design, consulting and fiduciary services firm, expanding in 2018 to bring on Candi Chapman and LoneStar 401(k) Consultants. Jonathan Duggan, Principal of TRG, explained the reason for entering into this agreement with EdgeCo, “The EdgeCo group of companies understand what’s required to support the financial intermediary that serves the needs of the retirement plan and its participants. Their scale will help us meet ambitious goals of introducing our critical fiduciary and administrative services to those seeking our foundational guidance in this retirement market.”
Guiding the growth of the TRG products and services within AmericanTCS will be Mr. Jeff Atwell, SVP of Fiduciary Services, AmericanTCS; Mr. Jonathan Duggan, VP of AmericanTCS Sales & Support; and Mr. Joseph Zdarsky, VP of Plan Operations at AmericanTCS. Ms. Chapman and Mr. Neward will actively guide the transition of clients for an indeterminate amount of time.
“Our mission at AmericanTCS is to help create financial security for all Americans by bringing together industry-leading technology, investment solutions and, most importantly, people with deep experience in the retirement industry,” explained Tim Friday, President of AmericanTCS. He continued, “the fiduciary and administrative services TRG has developed are great examples of the expanding toolset we are investing in with the simple goal of making sure our business partners’ time is best spent in front of the client creating excellent outcomes, not dealing with operational challenges. We have had a long-standing custody relationship with TRG, so we know the entire team at the TRG companies and have such respect for them. We are so excited to have them join AmericanTCS.”
Upon closing of the transaction, the firm will operate within AmericanTCS for a period of time before its operations and offering are integrated into the various AmericanTCS entities and the brand name is transitioned.
About EdgeCo Holdings, LP.
Through its AmericanTCS and NewEdge Capital Group divisions, EdgeCo Holdings is a premier provider of best-in-class, technology-enabled solutions for financial intermediaries and their clients. For over four decades, EdgeCo companies have provided a suite of technology and support services, including full-service retirement plan administration, brokerage, advisory, and trust and custody solutions to a diverse national client base of financial intermediaries. This client base includes registered representatives, investment advisors and other financial intermediaries, including retirement plan recordkeepers, TPAs, bank trust departments, broker dealers and insurance companies. EdgeCo Holdings currently services over $150 billion in client assets under custody or administration and more than 10,000 financial advisors and 500 financial institutions.