Defined contribution plan providers risk losing business if they don't...

Defined contribution plan providers risk losing business if they don’t invest in technology to improve account access for individual users, according to an Ernst & Young report on the future of the financial services industry, presented Tuesday at the firm’s New York offices. "We’re clearly going to see an environment where it’s more performance-based,” said Robert W. Stein, chairman of Ernst & Young Global Financial Services. Easier access to performance data via the Internet may make manager changes more common, he suggested, adding that defined contribution providers are lagging behind mutual funds. "Some (defined contribution) providers are spending enormous sums of money to catch up,” he said. "Those who have the capital available and are upgrading their technology will do well. Those who don’t will lag behind.”