Voya expands nonqualified deferred compensation offering with new ‘Business-ready’ solution for smaller-sized businesses

New solution, designed for small businesses, will build upon Voya’s prior success in the market as its NQDC plan growth more than doubled in 2023

Voya Financial, Inc. (NYSE: VOYA), announced today the launch of “Business-ready” — the latest addition to the firm’s comprehensive lineup of nonqualified deferred compensation (NQDC) solutions. As a differentiated market offering, Business-ready provides a more simplified NQDC offering designed specifically for smaller-size employers as an added solution for their executive benefits package.

“At Voya, we continue to see a growing interest in our executive benefit solutions — so much so that in 2023 we saw a 117% increase in total plans sold in Voya’s NQDC offerings over the prior year¹,” said Kirk Penland, senior vice president, Nonqualified Markets. “At the same time, we also know there is not a ‘one size fits all’ solution when it comes to building an executive’s total rewards package. As smaller employers have unique needs, our new Business-ready offering provides those employers with an opportunity to offer a successful NQDC offering, without the complexities of a tailored solution that many larger companies seek today.”

Business-ready is available to any size 409A (for-profit) company but has been designed specifically for smaller-size employers, including those with less than 400 employees. The new solution brings forward the expertise and experience of Voya’s Non-Qualified Markets team, while providing many of the core benefits of a more customized solution, including several differentiating features. These include:

• A pre-built investment lineup: Offering 21 unique asset categories, including equities, fixed income (i.e. short-/intermediate-term bonds, high yield, global) and alternatives (such as real estate) managed by Voya Investment Management. With access to more funds and fund manager support — including access to different target-dates series — participants are offered diversification without an overwhelming number of options.
• Easy implementation and administration: Providing more-streamlined plan design choices and funding options. This includes mutual funds and corporate-owned life insurance, as well as faster implementation and ongoing plan management tailored to employers on the smaller end of the market.
• Less complexity: With a focus on providing easier plan management for both employers and their participants, Business-ready offers the core attributes that make a NQDC plan effective for participants without the complexities of a larger custom plan, including flexible contribution and distribution schedules.

As the holistic wellness needs of Americans continue to evolve, innovative compensation benefits are becoming an increasingly important way for employers to attract and reward leadership talent within an organization. As a result, more employers are looking to include NQDC, or executive benefit solutions, into their overall benefit offering; according to industry data, a majority (89%) of employers today offer NQDC plans to stay competitive with their benefits packages.²

“Many executives face unique challenges saving for retirement due to contribution limits of a traditional retirement savings plan,” added Hunter Penland, vice president, Non-Qualified Markets sales and service at Voya. “Because a NQDC plan can help address their needs, these options are becoming increasingly popular across the industry and even more so among our existing clients at Voya.”

Voya has been able to further its innovative, nonqualified compensation executive benefit solution along with its leading qualified plan administration services through an integrated experience that helps advance greater financial security for all participants. Most recently, the firm added Voya Investment Management’s Pomona Investment Fund, an alternative private equity product, as a new option to the Voya NQDC investment lineup. In addition, Voya has launched NQDC distribution portfolios, a first-of-their-kind investment model, developed with Voya Investment Management’s Multi-Asset Strategies and Solutions team, designed for individuals looking to closely align their NQDC distribution dates with the investments in their plan.

As an industry leader focused on the delivery of benefits, savings and investment solutions to and through the workplace, Voya is committed to delivering on its mission to make a secure financial future possible for all — one person, one family, one institution at a time.

1. Voya internal data as of Dec. 31, 2023.

2. PlanAdviser, “Small and Medium Businesses Driving NQDC Plan Growth,” (Dec. 2022).

About Voya Financial^®

Voya Financial, Inc. (NYSE: VOYA), is a leading health, wealth and investment company with approximately 9,000 employees who are focused on achieving Voya’s aspirational vision: Clearing your path to financial confidence and a more fulfilling life. Through products, solutions and technologies, Voya helps its 15.2 million individual, workplace and institutional clients become well planned, well invested and well protected. Benefitfocus, a Voya company and a leading benefits administration provider, extends the reach of Voya’s workplace benefits and savings offerings by engaging directly with over 12 million employees in the U.S. Certified as a “Great Place to Work” by the Great Place to Work^® Institute, Voya is purpose-driven and committed to conducting business in a way that is economically, ethically, socially and environmentally responsible. Voya has earned recognition as: one of the World’s Most Ethical Companies^® by Ethisphere; a member of the Bloomberg Gender-Equality Index; and a “Best Place to Work for Disability Inclusion” on the Disability Equality Index. For more information, visit voya.com. Follow Voya Financial on Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram.

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