Lawsuits against retirement plan sponsors have increasingly focused on excessive fees and the failure to select lower-cost investment vehicles, like Collective Investment Trusts (CITs), which many sponsors are surprised to learn have existed longer than mutual funds. 

CITs, which will reach their centennial in 2027, operate much like mutual funds in structure and oversight, but typically offer lower fees and greater flexibility in pricing. Larger retirement plans have rapidly adopted CITs, with plans over $500 million in assets now allocating about 41% to them, up significantly from just a few years ago. Despite their benefits, some plan sponsors hesitate to adopt CITs due to their lack of publicly searchable tickers and unfamiliar regulation by the OCC rather than the SEC. 

However, CITs offer key advantages, including fiduciary governance and the potential for customized pricing through asset aggregation or specialized share classes. 

With education and communication, sponsors and participants can overcome initial concerns and access the cost-efficiency and fiduciary alignment CITs provide.