Plan Sponsor

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A designated party, usually a company or employer, that sets up a healthcare or retirement plan such as a 401(k) for the benefit of the organization's employees. The responsibilities of the plan sponsor include determining membership parameters, investment choices and, in some cases, providing contribution payments in the form of cash and/or stock.

Investopedia Says:
While some plan sponsors will take matters into their own hands and handle all the investment decisions for retirement plans, most of them outsource the fiduciary management of the assets in the plan to one or more third parties. This way, multiple investment options run by different money managers may be offered to suit various risk profiles among the company's employees.

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