Janus Henderson Accused of Favoring Own Funds in 401(k) Plan

Asset manager Janus Henderson US Holdings Inc. profits off its employees’ retirement savings by filling their 401(k) plan with poorly performing funds that pay fees to the company, a proposed class action filed in Colorado federal court alleges.

Janus acted with “blind preference” for its own proprietary investment products, filling its $512 million 401(k) plan with every mutual fund in its lineup, plaintiff Sandra Schissler said in the complaint. No other similarly sized retirement plan entrusts “essentially all” of its actively managed investments to Janus, Schissler said.

“Defendants’ favoritism has led to the payment of excessive investment management fees by ...