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FEDERAL RETIREMENT THRIFT INVESTMENT BOARD ANNOUNCES
VENDOR SELECTION FOR COMPREHENSIVE COMMUNICATIONS STRATEGY

     Washington, D.C. (January 19, 2005) — The Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board announced today that CitiStreet, LLC has been selected to assist in the development of a comprehensive communications strategy in connection with new lifecycle funds to be first offered this summer by the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP).  CitiStreet, which was selected through a competitive procurement, is a joint venture equally owned by State Street Corporation and Citigroup, two widely known financial services providers.

     Last November, the Board announced the selection of a vendor to help develop lifecycle asset allocation models for the TSP.  Once the models are developed, an extensive participant communications effort will be deployed.  CitiStreet will assist the Board in developing the strategy for that effort.

     Lifecycle funds are asset allocation portfolios with investment mixes tailored to a participant’s target time horizon.  The target horizon is generally when the participant intends to withdraw the funds.  As the withdrawal date approaches, the fund’s investment mix automatically becomes more conservative (i.e., less risky).  Participants who select lifecycle funds do not need to reallocate their account assets to achieve this result; the lifecycle investment models automatically reallocate the account for the participant.

     Gary A. Amelio, Executive Director of the Agency, has been a proponent of lifecycle funds since he accepted his position in May 2003.  “When I left the private sector, these funds were becoming more popular with both plan providers and participants,” according to Amelio.  “Recent reports show that these funds continue to grow in popularity because they provide the benefits of professional asset management in participant-directed retirement savings plans like the TSP.  I’m delighted that we will be able to make these available to TSP participants, and enthusiastically look forward to working with CitiStreet on our comprehensive communications strategy.”

     The TSP is a retirement savings plan for Federal employees; it is similar to the 401(k) plans offered by many private employers.  As of December 31, 2004, TSP assets totaled more than $152 billion, and retirement savings accounts were being maintained for more than 3.4 million TSP participants.  Participants include Federal civilian employees in all branches of Government, employees of the U.S. Postal Service, and members of the uniformed services.

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