Illinois State Treasurer’s Office, Springfield, hired Union Bank & Trust as the sole program manager for its $6.5 billion Bright Start College Savings and $2.4 billion Bright Directions College Savings 529 plans, said Illinois Treasurer Michael W. Frerichs.
RFPs were previously issued because the contracts of OppenheimerFunds, incumbent provider for the Bright Start Direct and Bright Start Advisor plans, and Union Bank & Trust, incumbent provider for the Bright Directions plan, expire in July.
Mr. Frerichs said Union Bank & Trust was selected because of its variety of fund options and lower fees. Oppenheimer did not rebid.
Along with the change in program manager, the investment lineup for the Bright Start Direct plan is changing, and Bright Start Advisor accounts are being transferred to Bright Directions. Bright Start Advisor is being discontinued. Investment options for Bright Directions are not expected to change dramatically, while the number of options for Bright Start Direct is expanding.
