April 10, 2024
Collective investment trusts
Collective investment trusts (CITs) may offer a lower-cost alternative to mutual funds for defined contribution (DC), including 401(k) plans as well as other qualified retirement plans. John Hancock offers a wide range of CITs that can be used to customize a portfolio.
What are collective investment trusts?
Collective investment trusts (CITs) are regulated institutional-only pooled investment vehicles that have been in existence since 1927. They were created specifically to allow certain qualified retirement plans to pool plan assets in a diversified investment vehicle with a lower cost base compared to mutual funds. CITs are maintained by banks or trust companies.
Who is John Hancock Trust Company?
John Hancock Trust Company is a subsidiary of Manulife, a global financial organization with a footprint across five continents and a history spanning over 125 years. John Hancock Trust Company offers a diverse lineup of CITs, and is one of a family of affiliated managers that includes Manulife Investment Management and John Hancock Investment Management.
Understanding the potential benefits
CITs are a regulated, cost-effective, and flexible trust structure that may provide a compelling alternative to mutual funds for certain qualified retirement plans.
Cost effective
CITs typically have lower operating costs compared with mutual funds.
Transparent
CITs are valued daily, provide daily liquidity, increasingly have ticker symbols, and may be traded through the National Securities Clearing Corporation (NSCC).
Regulated
CITs are regulated by federal and/or state bank regulators, U.S. Treasury Department, and U.S. Department of Labor.
Target-date vehicle of choice
Target-date CITs account for the majority of inflows from DC retirement plans. Over the last five years, target-date CITs have grown at twice the rate of target-date mutual funds.
Source: Cerulli, Sway Research, John Hancock Trust Company, 2024.
Important disclosures
A Collective Investment Trust (CIT) is a pooled investment vehicle that is maintained by a bank or trust company for the collective investment of certain qualified retirement plans only. CITs cannot be publicly marketed or sold. CITs are exempt from registration under the federal securities laws and exempt from the regulatory requirements on mutual funds under the Investment Company Act of 1940; however, they are subject to federal and state regulation under the banking laws, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, the Internal Revenue Code, and certain securities laws. A mutual fund is a publicly traded pooled investment fund that are offered through registered investment companies overseen by the US Securities and Exchange Commission. A mutual fund is a pooled collection of assets that invests in stocks, bonds, and other investments and is regulated by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
CITs are not subject to the regulatory, operational, reporting, and disclosure requirements of mutual funds. Administration, distribution, and marketing cost generally lower than those for mutual funds as well.
CITs are regulated trust vehicles that may invest in active and passive investment strategies across a wide range of asset classes and investment style boxes.
Eligible investors
CITs are professionally managed institutional-only vehicles available to certain qualified retirement plans.
Eligible | Not currently eligible |
Qualified 401(k) plans |
403(b) plans |
401(a) government plans |
457(f) government plans |
457(b) government plans |
IRAs |
Qualified profit-sharing plans |
Keogh accounts |
Qualified stock bonus plans |
Endowment plans |
Qualified pension plans |
Foundation plans |
Certain separate accounts and contracts of insurance companies |
Health and welfare benefit plans |
Taft-Hartley plans (multiemployer or union plans) |
Nonqualified deferred compensation plans |
Comparing CITs and mutual funds
CITs have evolved since their early inception to offer retirement plans a comparable experience to mutual funds, typically at a lower cost base.
CIT | Mutual fund | |
Eligible investors |
For certain qualified retirement plans only; minimum investment requirements may apply |
All investors |
Regulation |
Federal and/or state bank regulators, U.S. Department of the Treasury, and U.S. Department of Labor |
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission |
Liquidity |
Daily (subject to trust governing provisions) |
Daily |
Trading and valuation |
Mostly traded on the NSCC Valued daily |
Traded on the NSCC Valued daily |
Ticker symbols |
Some CITs have registered tickers |
Yes |
Purchasing process |
Participation agreement required |
Not applicable—publicly traded |
Multiple share classes |
Allowed |
Allowed |
Operating costs |
Generally lower than mutual funds¹ |
Generally higher than CITs |
404(a)(5) fee transparency |
Yes |
Yes |
Tax status |
Tax exempt |
Generally not tax exempt |
ERISA status |
Fund assets considered plan assets and subject to ERISA standards |
Not considered plan assets, not subject to ERISA |
Reporting |
Fact sheets available Audited financial statements |
Fact sheets available Audited annual report |
Governing document |
Declaration of trust |
Prospectus |
Important disclosures
A Collective Investment Trust (CIT) is a pooled investment vehicle that is maintained by a bank or trust company for the collective investment of certain qualified retirement plans only. CITs cannot be publicly marketed or sold. CITs are exempt from registration under the federal securities laws and exempt from the regulatory requirements on mutual funds under the Investment Company Act of 1940; however, they are subject to federal and state regulation under the banking laws, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, the Internal Revenue Code, and certain securities laws. A mutual fund is a publicly traded pooled investment fund that are offered through registered investment companies overseen by the US Securities and Exchange Commission. A mutual fund is a pooled collection of assets that invests in stocks, bonds, and other investments and is regulated by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
What sets us apart?
John Hancock Trust Company is backed by the resources and investment expertise of Manulife, a global financial organization that serves client interests across public and private markets.
Global reach and expertise
We're part of a financial organization that has $800 billion2 in assets under management and administration and over 640 investment professionals3 worldwide.
Established infrastructure
Leveraging our group’s established infrastructure enables us to guide clients through a seamless onboarding experience and deliver on our clients’ ongoing and evolving needs.
Recordkeeping relationships
We have a well-established in-house recordkeeper as well as long-standing relationships with many of the largest recordkeeping aggregators in the country.
Risk and governance expertise
As a steward of capital, we have extensive risk management and governance expertise built over years of managing investment risk and assisting institutions globally.
May 3, 2023
Three reasons CITs are gaining in popularity
For more information on recordkeeping services, contact your John Hancock representative.