DALLAS – Custodia Financial, the creator of Retirement Loan Eraser (RLE), today announced that it has appointed Mark Herman to its Strategic Advisory Council (SAC). As a member of the SAC, Mr. Herman will help guide Custodia on its mission to automatically improve retirement readiness by solving America’s $2.5T 401(k) loan default problem.
Prior to joining the SAC, Mr. Herman served as President and Chief Operating Officer of CNA Financial Corp.’s Specialty Lines business. Before CNA, he served as CEO of Everest National Insurance Company and held other senior executive leadership roles at Chubb & Sons, ACE, and Ariel Holdings. Mr. Herman brings significant knowledge of ERISA-regulated employee benefits though his experience providing fiduciary liability insurance to plan sponsors.
“Having a seasoned insurance industry CEO of Mark’s caliber on our SAC is a huge win for us,” said Tod Ruble, CEO of Custodia Financial. “As President and COO of CNA’s Specialty Lines business, Mark led the charge in expanding access to highly specialized coverage areas in a financially sustainable way—which is exactly what we’re doing with Retirement Loan Eraser (RLE). We’re thrilled to have his wealth of experience, deep subject matter expertise, and vast industry network to help make 401(k) loan insurance the next industry standard ‘auto’ feature.”
“I’m excited about what the Custodia team is doing with Retirement Loan Eraser (RLE),” said Mr. Herman. “Custodia has brought together all the necessary components for delivering on their mission: they’re addressing an urgent need, the ERISA legal framework strongly supports their approach, and they have the proprietary technology and financial model to offer their solution at scale.”
Mr. Herman joins Dave Liebrock, former President of Workplace Investing at Fidelity Investments, on the SAC. Custodia will announce additional appointments in early 2019. The company’s objective for the SAC is to continue to add seasoned leaders in complementary disciplines critical to solving the 401(k) loan default problem. The SAC will advise Custodia on a range of strategic issues, including refining product development, distribution, insurance, and regulatory matters. Custodia’s SAC will support its full-time team of retirement experts that includes former senior executives from Fidelity Investments, Financial Engines, SunGard, Voya Financial, and Wells Fargo.
About Retirement Loan Eraser
Loan defaults in 401(k) plans are widely acknowledged as a significant problem harming retirement outcomes. Retirement Loan Eraser (RLE) is an automated loan insurance program that prevents 401(k) loan defaults, protecting plan assets and immediately improving retirement outcomes. RLE is the only solution available that helps plan sponsors prevent loan defaults by repaying the outstanding loan balance of borrowers losing their jobs, while reducing fiduciary risk.
