Stable-Value (SV) Rates, 9/1/25
TIAA Traditional Annuity (Accumulation) Rates
Restricted RC 5.00%, RA 4.75%
Flexible RCP 4.25%, SRA 4.00%, IRA-101110+ 4.00%
TSP G Fund pending% (previous 4.375%).
Options outside of workplace retirement plans include m-mkt funds, bank m-mkt accounts (FDIC insured), T-Bills, short-term brokered CDs.
#StableValue #401k #403b #TIAA #TSP
https://ybbpersonalfinance.proboards.com/post/2185/thread

@mskursh- Having used American Funds primarily for almost fifty years to build our retirement position we now have simplified to MMKT, CD, and Treasury holdings at Schwab. Having used many different American Funds over the years, I'm curious as to which one that you've chosen for your simplification situation.
Thanks- OJ

It was between American Fund Retirement Income Enhanced - FCFWX or simply Balanced Fund of America - BALFX
The distinction is the international exposure in the end. FCFWX is an allocation and BALFX isn't. We decided on FCFWX. its slightly less risky than the balanced fund. 60/40 as opposed to 65/35 and it had more international stocks.
My parents hold 2 years of cash in a money market fund, have a small annuity, and modest SS payments.

@mskursh- Having used American Funds primarily for almost fifty years to build our retirement position we now have simplified to MMKT, CD, and Treasury holdings at Schwab. Having used many different American Funds over the years, I'm curious as to which one that you've chosen for your simplification situation.
Thanks- OJ

am interested if anyone knows a tracker specifically for retirement flows in\out of S&P500 index vehicles.

From the linked article:

More than 100 publicly traded companies now have some crypto assets on their balance sheets. None owns more than Strategy MSTR (formerly known as MicroStrategy), a pioneer of this trend. The firm first started investing in bitcoin in August 2020 and now owns more than 600,000 bitcoins, or roughly $70 billion at current prices. That’s more than 60% of the firm’s market cap, so the stock’s fortunes rely almost entirely on bitcoin. The stock moved almost lockstep with bitcoin until 2024, when Strategy’s growth skyrocketed and began trading at a substantial premium.

Is-cryptocurrency-already-hiding-your-retirement-account?

Are there any concerns that Mr. Giroux might be spread too thin?

Sure I have a concern, plus he's been there a long time and could be considering promotion or retirement at some point. So I watch my PRWCX and would have no problem reducing to a toehold if necessary.
That said, I don't like how they're trying to capitalize on the 'Capital Appreciation' moniker. I get why TRowe would do it, but at times it does make me a bit uncomfortable seeing ithem expand the 'brand' like this.

https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/914775/000174177325002968/c497.htm
497 1 c497.htm SUPPLEMENT TO PROSPECTUS AND SAI
August 22, 2025
BNY Mellon Advantage Funds, Inc.
BNY Mellon Dynamic Total Return Fund
Supplement to Summary Prospectus, Prospectus and Statement of Additional Information
The Board of Directors of BNY Mellon Advantage Funds, Inc. (the "Company") has approved the liquidation of BNY Mellon Dynamic Total Return Fund (the "Fund"), a series of the Company, effective on or about October 24, 2025 (the "Liquidation Date"). Before the Liquidation Date, and at the discretion of Fund management, the Fund's portfolio securities, including the Fund's investments in DTR Commodity Fund Ltd., a wholly-owned and controlled subsidiary of the Fund organized under the laws of the Cayman Islands, will be sold and the Fund may cease to pursue its investment objective and policies. The liquidation of the Fund may result in one or more taxable events for shareholders subject to federal income tax.
Accordingly, effective on or about September 26, 2025 (the "Closing Date"), the Fund will be closed to any investments for new accounts, except that new accounts may be established by participants in group retirement plans if the Fund is established as an investment option under the plans before the Closing Date. The Fund will continue to accept subsequent investments until the Liquidation Date, except that subsequent investments made by check or pursuant to TeleTransfer or Automatic Asset Builder no longer will be accepted after October 14, 2025. However, subsequent investments by Individual Retirement Accounts and retirement plans sponsored by BNY Mellon Investment Adviser, Inc. or its affiliates (together, "BNYIA Retirement Plans") pursuant to TeleTransfer or Automatic Asset Builder (but not by check) will be accepted after October 14, 2025.
Effective on the Closing Date, the front-end sales load applicable to purchases of the Fund's Class A shares will be waived on investments made in the Fund's Class A shares. In addition, as of that date, the contingent deferred sales charge ("CDSC") applicable to redemptions of Class C shares and Class A shares of the Fund will be waived on any redemption of such Fund shares.
To the extent subsequent investments are made in the Fund on or after the Closing Date, the Fund's distributor will not compensate financial institutions (which may include banks, securities dealers and other industry professionals) for selling Class C shares or Class A shares subject to a CDSC at the time of purchase.
Fund shares held on the Liquidation Date in BNYIA Retirement Plans will be exchanged for Wealth shares of Dreyfus Government Cash Management ("DGCM"). Investors may obtain a copy of the Prospectus of DGCM by calling 1-800-373-9387.
6140STK0825

https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1217673/000119312525182599/d947285d497.htm
497 1 d947285d497.htm BARON SELECT FUNDS
Filed by Baron ETF Trust
pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act of 1933
Subject Company: Baron Select Funds
SEC File No. 811-06312 and 333-103025
Baron Select Funds®
Baron FinTech Fund®
Baron Technology Fund®
Supplement to Current Summary Prospectuses and Prospectus
For all existing and prospective shareholders of Baron FinTech Fund and Baron Technology Fund:
•Baron FinTech Fund and Baron Technology Fund (each, an “Acquired Fund”) will each be converted from a mutual fund into an exchange-traded fund (“ETF”), which is expected to occur on or about December 12, 2025.
•If you are an existing shareholder of an Acquired Fund, and your account can hold an ETF, your shares will be converted, and no action is needed by you.
•If you hold shares of an Acquired Fund in an account that cannot hold an ETF (i.e., your account is not permitted to purchase securities traded in the stock market), there are certain actions you can take. See the “Questions and Answers” section below for further information.
At a meeting held on August 5, 2025 (the “Meeting”), the Board of Trustees of Baron Select Funds (the “Acquired Fund Trust”) approved on behalf of the Acquired Funds and the Board of Trustees of Baron ETF Trust (the “Acquiring Fund Trust”) approved on behalf of Baron Financials ETF and Baron Technology ETF (each, an “Acquiring Fund” and together with the Acquired Funds, the “Funds”) (the Board of Trustees of Acquired Fund Trust and the Board of Trustees of Acquiring Fund Trust are referred to herein collectively as the “Board”) an Agreement and Plan of Reorganization pursuant to which an Acquired Fund, a series of the Acquired Fund Trust, will transfer its assets and liabilities to its corresponding Acquiring Fund, each a series of Acquiring Fund Trust, in exchange for shares of its corresponding Acquiring Fund in a tax-free reorganization (each, a “Reorganization”). Each Acquiring Fund is, and will be immediately prior to the date of the closing, a shell series, without assets or liabilities. The Board, including all of the
Trustees who are not “interested persons” of the Funds (as defined in the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”)), determined that, for each Acquired Fund and Reorganization, participation in the Reorganization is in the best interests of the Acquired Fund and that the interests of existing shareholders of the Acquired Fund will not be diluted as a result of the Reorganization. Each Reorganization is expected to become effective on or about December 12, 2025 (the “Closing Date”).
Each Acquiring Fund will have an identical investment objective and identical fundamental investment policies as its corresponding Acquired Fund, as well as substantially similar investment strategies. Baron FinTech Fund and Baron Financials ETF are diversified, while Baron Technology Fund and Baron Technology ETF are non-diversified. BAMCO, Inc. (“BAMCO” or the “Adviser”), the Acquired Funds’ current investment adviser, will serve as the investment adviser of the Acquiring Funds. The portfolio management team of each Acquiring Fund is the same as that of its corresponding Acquired Fund.
The Board believes each Reorganization will permit shareholders of the Acquired Portfolio to pursue the same investment objective in an ETF structure, which provides multiple benefits for shareholders, including lower costs, the potential for increased tax efficiency, intraday trading and full daily holdings transparency.
Each Reorganization is structured to be a tax-free reorganization under the United States Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. As a result, Acquired Fund shareholders generally will not recognize a taxable gain (or loss) for U.S. tax purposes as a result of the Reorganizations (although cash received as part of a Reorganization may be taxable, as noted below).
In connection with the Reorganizations, shareholders of the Acquired Funds will generally receive ETF shares of the Acquiring Funds equal in aggregate net asset value to the number of shares of the Acquired Funds they own. For the avoidance of doubt, the Acquiring Funds shall not issue fractional shares, and cash shall be distributed to Acquired Fund Shareholders in connection with the Reorganizations in lieu of fractional Acquiring Fund shares.
Shareholders who do not want or cannot hold Acquiring Fund shares may redeem out of the Acquired Funds or exchange their Acquired Fund shares for shares of another fund. A redemption or exchange of shares would generally be a taxable event for shareholders holding shares in taxable accounts.
2
If you hold your Acquired Fund shares in an account with a financial intermediary that is not able to hold shares of an ETF such as the Acquiring Funds, like many individual retirement accounts or group retirement plans, as of the Closing date, you will not receive Acquiring Fund shares as part of the conversion. Instead, your Acquired Fund shares will be liquidated, and you may receive cash equal in value to the net asset value of your Acquired Fund shares.
Completion of the Reorganizations is subject to making various filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commissions (the “SEC”) and a number of conditions under the Plans. The Reorganizations do not require shareholder approval. Acquired Fund shareholders will receive an information statement/prospectus describing in detail both the Reorganizations and the Acquiring Funds, and a summary of the Board’s considerations in approving the Reorganizations.
In anticipation of the Reorganizations:
•on or about October 31, 2025, all Rule 12b-1 fees on Retail Shares of the Acquired Funds will be waived;
•on or about October 31, 2025, all issued and outstanding shares of the Acquired Funds will be closed to new shareholders and subsequent purchases through the time of the Reorganizations.
These dates may be subject to change.
An Information Statement/Prospectus with respect to the Reorganizations is expected to be mailed to Acquired Fund shareholders in October 2025. The Information Statement/Prospectus will describe the Acquiring Funds and other matters. Investors may obtain a free copy of the Prospectus of the Acquiring Funds once the registration statement of the Acquiring Funds becomes effective or by calling (800) 823-6300.
Please retain this supplement for future reference...

@rforno- Interesting to see American Funds EuroPacific and Washington Mutual again after all these years. We used both of them (but class A) fairly heavily when we were in our accumulation phase. American Funds was really good about allowing us to group all of our various IRAs and non-retirement accounts to meet their minimum for no-load purchases.

Thanks—I've enjoyed reading this article!
The so-called 4% rule is a good starting point for determining withdrawal rates
but it is not written in stone and may not be applicable in many situations.
Supposedly, financial advisors often have to encourage their clients to spend more.
Worrying about withdrawal rates is a waste of time for these people.
However, contemplating withdrawal rates is not an "academic exercise" or "distraction"
for many people with less financial security.
I broadly agree with the author's stated beliefs:
Instead of spending hours tweaking your safe withdrawal spreadsheet,
you should spend that time figuring out what matters to you.
What experiences light you up?
What do you want to say yes to before your time is up?
Where are you holding back out of habit, fear, or spreadsheet-based anxiety?
Then spend.
Pivot when needed.
Adjust along the way.
Because your retirement spending isn’t a fixed equation—it’s a living, breathing process.
It should evolve with your life, your priorities, and yes, even the market.
BTW, the benchmark withdrawal rate was raised in Bill Bengen's new book. ;-)
https://www.mutualfundobserver.com/discuss/discussion/64438/safe-withdrawal-rates-bengen#latest

Interesting take on the SWR and why it probably doesn't matter if you know what it is.

The people most concerned about outliving their money tend to be the least likely to actually do so. They stack conservative assumption upon conservative assumption—projecting higher-than-expected inflation, worst-case market returns, maximum sequence-of-return risk—and then underspend out of fear. They end up dying with too much money and too many unfulfilled dreams.
Yes, the 4% rule might give us a loose framework. Yes, financial models have value. But they were never meant to become shackles.
The truth is, you can’t predict the future. Black swan events, long-term care needs, unexpected medical expenses—these things happen. But the bigger danger for this audience isn’t overspending.
It’s under-living.

Link to Article:
why-youre-wasting-time-worrying-about?
also,
A discussion from Reddit regarding SWR and how it is just a rough calculation and not a fine tuned retirement spending strategy:
DIYRetirement/comments/safe_withdrawal_rates_and_variable_cash_flows

Trends in 401k Allocations
Equity allocations in workplace retirement 401k are rising, as the chart below from Vanguard shows. Some of it is due to the popularity of TDFs (target-date funds; glide-path allocations) as default (& popular) options within 401k. However, the retirement account holders are free to adjust their allocations, but typically don't. While the WSJ article may require subscription, the key chart linked/shown below shows the essence of the article.
WSJ (subscription) https://www.wsj.com/personal-finance/retirement/us-401k-retirement-stock-market-84cfe48d
I also track the overall allocations within all listed US funds - loosely, America's asset allocation. It also indicates rising equity allocations, but not as high as the Vanguard 401k data.
OEFs & ETFs: Stocks 61.34%, Hybrids 4.14%, Bonds 17.47%, M-Mkt 17.05%
https://ybbpersonalfinance.proboards.com/post/2119/thread
People should review their overall allocations periodically to see if they are comfortable with the current asset allocations.
https://i.ibb.co/n5Nf8ck/WSJ-Allocations-401k-081725.png

I think this thread from off-topic should be moved as I just tried to sell a small position in my retirement account & received the same message that Crash is talking about. Sell was for 360.107 shares totaling a little less than $3000. Cash available $460.65.
OPPS!!!

Date: 08/15/2025
Category: Important Notification
Online account information may be inaccurate for some retirement accounts. Please accept our apologies as our teams work to resolve the issue as quickly as possible. For assistance, please call us at 800-435-4000.
********
I suppose a big bunch of us received his message. What CAUSED this is an item they'd better be able to explain to me. I logged-in late last night and I thought I noticed something was wrong...

From Markets A.M. newsletter by Spencer Jakab.
On this day in 1935, the Social Security Act was signed into law,
ensuring some retirement income for all working Americans.
Payroll taxes were set at 1%, for both workers and employers,
on the first $3,000 of earnings.

Does CPI Reflect True Inflation? Some on Wall Street Have Doubts

• CPI says “no big inflation” — sorry to the hundreds of experts who swore it was coming any minute now.
• S&P 500 at yet another all-time high — apparently Wall St. doesn't have doubts!!

Weakening job numbers is more concerning than a little more inflation. AI, general uncertainty about economy and tariffs are causing unemployment for college grads to be higher than general unemployment rate.
There were 30,000 - 50,000 applicants for 100-200 summer internships in top tech companies. Even small companies in small Midwest towns are getting up to 1,000 applications for one internship.
Heritage Foundation (conservative think tank) argues that broad indiscriminate tariff measures jack up production costs, disrupt American manufacturers (who rely on imported parts), prompt costly retaliatory duties, and ultimately cost U.S. jobs.
Among households where the head is 50 or older, about 23% hold more than $30,000 in non-retirement stock assets. We need that number to be > 75%!

@rforno said,

That's precisely why I am NOT in my state pension plan! My entire 403b is in a vanilla quality equity-only American Fund.

If you are a public school teacher I believe you are contributing to your state pension through monthly (payroll deductions) that are mandatory contributions to help fund the state pension fund. Your state also is required to contribute and often state's choose not to fully fund. Big problem when they don't.
Your 403(b) is an additional retirement option that you elect to contribute to individually. It is not mandatory.
In addition to 403(b) options you may also have 457 and 401(a) options.
At retirement, all teachers, who qualify (by age, years of service, etc.), will receive a pension (the State of CT in my case) based on a specific set of criteria and formula.
Your 403(b) is totally separate from your state/municipal pension. I too contributed to my 403(b).
When you separate service you can roll over your 403(b). Another option is to annuitize your 403(b). I did both.

Nope. As a university professor I had the option of selecting either the state pension or self-directed 403(b) - known as the Optional Retirement Plan - when hired. In my case the 403(b) contributions are pre-tax and 'above' my salary ... nothing I do or have touches the state pension system and I don't contribute to it myself. (Though pension and ORP folks alike can open up various pre- or post-tax 403b or 457b accounts as supplimental retirement accounts to save extra if we want.)
What you say is true for many K-12 teachers/staff in my state, but even then I believe they're also given the choice of either a traditional pension or ORP. But of course that varies by state and/or district.

@rforno said,

That's precisely why I am NOT in my state pension plan! My entire 403b is in a vanilla quality equity-only American Fund.

If you are a public school teacher I believe you are contributing to your state pension through monthly (payroll deductions) that are mandatory contributions to help fund the state pension fund. Your state also is required to contribute and often state's choose not to fully fund. Big problem when they don't.
Your 403(b) is an additional retirement option that you elect to contribute to individually. It is not mandatory.
In addition to 403(b) options you may also have 457 and 401(a) options.
At retirement, all teachers, who qualify (by age, years of service, etc.), will receive a pension (the State of CT in my case) based on a specific set of criteria and formula.
Your 403(b) is totally separate from your state/municipal pension. I too contributed to my 403(b).
When you separate service you can roll over your 403(b). Another option is to annuitize your 403(b). I did both.

This has nothing to do with the fact that he's in-bed with the crypto lobby and the PE folks are in bed with his Treasury and Commerce secretaries, right?
Keep that junk away from my retirement assets!

Bingo.