Scottsdale, AZ, December 12, 2023 – Benefit Commerce Group (BCG), an Alera Group company, is pleased to announce that Fraser Group, a retirement plan services firm based in Scottsdale, has joined Alera Group. BCG provides diversified services across employee benefits, commercial property and casualty insurance, and retirement plan services.
Fraser Group is led by retirement industry leader George Fraser. Fraser and his team will continue in their existing roles and combine operations with BCG’s Retirement Plan Services Division.
“George Fraser is one of the leading lights in the retirement plan industry, and we’re thrilled to welcome him and his team to Alera Group Retirement Plan Services,” said Christian Mango, Executive Vice President and National Practice Leader, Retirement Plan Services, at Alera Group.
Fraser is known nationwide for retirement plan innovations, including his Pennies on the Dollar® model at the core of academic research published by acclaimed behavioral economist, Shlomo Benartzi. As much as his innovations, George is known for his enthusiasm around participant education.
“The addition of Fraser Group and George’s outstanding stature within the industry are significant enhancements to BCG’s Retirement Plan Services Division,” said Scott Wood, Managing Partner and Principal of BCG. “We know that utilizing the concepts that George and his team have developed will provide the very best service and support to our existing clients and our prospective new clients. BCG’s Retirement Plan Services Division will now include both BCG 401(k) Advisors and Fraser Group to address the retirement plan needs of employers of all sizes.”
BCG 401(k) Advisors was formed in 2022 when Alera Group acquired a retirement plan practice led by Jeff Anderson, another industry veteran. Anderson, President of BCG 401(k) Advisors, said, “There’s no one who’s more focused on truly helping the retirement plan participant than George Fraser. George and his team will be an integral part of our overall growth strategy with a keen eye on improving participant outcomes.”
Fraser and his team will continue serving existing clients as well as growing their practice across a wide range of plan sizes.
“My team and I have built our practice by focusing on trying to do the right thing to change the dynamic for retirement plan participants,” said Fraser. “That includes cutting the jargon and talking in ways people connect with. It also means helping plan sponsors craft exemplary plans they can be confident about.
“We looked at various scenarios for growing our practice’s reach, and Alera Group Retirement Plan Services was clearly the best fit. There aren’t many places where an advisor can walk into a firm of any size—from a small business to a global enterprise—and offer best-in-class solutions. Most importantly, we share a dedication to doing the right thing to help people,” Fraser added.
Fraser’s work has been prominent in the industry:
- In 2023, Fraser addressed the PLANADVISER magazine national conference on driving participant education. He also has addressed conferences held by the American Society of Pension Actuaries (ASPA), National Association of Plan Advisors (NAPA), Pensions & Investments newspaper, Institutional Investor magazine, PLANSPONSOR magazine, and others.
- In 2022, Fraser’s Pennies on the Dollar® model was a centerpiece of research by behavioral economist Shlomo Benartzi and his team at UCLA, Carnegie Mellon and Cornell, which showed plan participants save about 20% more when presented with deferral rates in terms of pennies rather than percentages.
- In 2022, Fraser was named “Plan Advisor of the Year” by PLANADVISER magazine in the category of “Community Impact and Giving Back.” This was for his work providing financial literacy and over $250,000 raised through the financial industry for teachers’ scholarships in the Region 9 Head Start Program since 2019.
- In 2017, Fraser was the inaugural recipient of the “TAPO” (Top Advisor for Participant Outcomes) presented by 401(k) Specialist magazine highlighting his “hope over fear focus.”
Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
ABOUT Benefit Commerce Group
Benefit Commerce Group (BCG), an Alera Group company, is a progressive and results-driven employee benefits, retirement plan services and commercial property & casualty consulting and brokerage firm. We are committed to creating strategies and solutions that make life easier and better for companies and their HR teams by providing the best cost-effective benefits value for employers, employees and families, including retirement plan services, and providing risk management and insurance services to businesses. We do this through collaboration—with our clients, our own experienced team, and with other Alera Group firms across the nation. Alera Group is the nation’s 16th largest and 11th fastest growing broker, providing powerful solutions in employee benefits, property & casualty, and wealth services for clients across the country. For more information on BCG, call us at 480-515-5010, visit our website: benefitcommerce.com and follow us on LinkedIn.
