Retirement plans or pensions may be classified as defined benefit or defined contribution according to how the benefits are determined. A defined benefit plan guarantees a certain payout after retirement, according to a fixed formula which usually depends on the member's salary and the number of years' membership of the plan. In a defined contribution plan, the payout is dependent upon the amount of money contributed, and the performance of the investment vehicles utilized. Owning company stock or a 401K are examples of this type of plan. Some types of retirement plans, such as cash balance plans, combine features of both defined benefit and defined contribution schemes.
Most plans are supported by employers for their employees. If your company does not offer a pension plan, it is possible to become a part of a community like a union that will secure a pension for its members. Examples are a teacher's union or metalworker's guild. In addition, plans like 401K's can be purchased individually from investment companies like https://401k.fidelity.com/, http://www.the401kcompany.com/ or the http://www.principal.com/. Most companies offer step-by-step instructions for investors to secure a personalized plan to create savings for the future. For a complete primer on investing in your future, try http://www.fool.com/Retirement/.
Update 26/03/2008
Keep more of your money when transferring funds overseas!
If you want to move money abroad, from the United States or to the United States for example, Fexco provides efficient and secure global bank to bank transfers and bespoke payment solutions for both business and personal clients.
Why Fexco
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Main characteristics
Fexco will help you to keep your overseas money transfer costs to a minimum.
| Margin | 0.6% |
|---|---|
| Regulator | FCA |
| Fee | £10 < £5K or Free > £5k |
| Mini | £1K |
| Ccy | All (130 currencies, incl ‘exotics’) |
| Services | Repatriation of funds, Property, Regular payments, High Value payments, spot, online, telephone. |
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When you are ready to make your transfer, John and his team will be available to help you with better rates and an unrivalled service to make sure your funds are delivered securely and speedily.