Despite the economic uncertainty caused by the pandemic—or possibly because of it—US retirement account balances rose to record levels during the fourth quarter of 2020, as reported by Fidelity Investments. The firm said individual contributions to individual retirement accounts (IRA), as well as 401(k) and 403(b) retirement accounts remained strong during the last three months of the year.
The “lockup” narrative around direct indexing suggests tax benefits vanish after initial loss harvesting. Jerry Michael, President of Smartleaf, dismantles the myth by showing how direct indexes can deliver tax efficiency across every client milestone—from onboarding legacy positions to withdrawals, charitable giving, and rebalancing. The issue isn’t whether direct indexes work long term; it’s whether advisors understand tax management beyond loss harvesting alone.
The US economy added 119,000 positions in September, data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed Thursday.