Ascensus' Flexibility Aligns with Commonwealth Model.

DRESHER, Pa. -- Ascensus is pleased to announce its partnership with Commonwealth Financial Network([R]) as a retirement plan provider to the independent broker/dealer-RIA's new Retirement Plan Consulting program. The new relationship enhances Commonwealth's retirement plan platform, while Ascensus expands its distribution opportunities with a network of more than 1,200 additional financial advisors.

Commonwealth sought the flexibility of Ascensus' open-investment architecture platforms, allowing Ascensus to operate under the firm's recently released Retirement Plan Consulting program. Ascensus' SingleSource(TM) and PrudentAdvisor(TM) provide the ability to tailor plans based on individual needs and provide access to full-service capabilities, from plan design to ongoing plan management.

"Our goal is to create the most effective client relationships and to enable advisors to provide fiduciary consulting services with true integrity," said Amy Glynn, Commonwealth's Director of Retirement Consulting Services. "We proactively sought a relationship with Ascensus because of its strong reputation in the industry, outstanding third-party service awards, and recognition and commitment to the intermediary marketplace."

"We're excited to be partnering with Commonwealth and to be offering our open-architecture retirement plan strategies. With the firm's heightened focus on the retirement industry, it has built out retirement capabilities and resources specifically dedicated to the business. This is another example of an intermediary channel embracing Ascensus' independent broad array of high-quality strategies," said Michael Narkoff, Senior Vice President, Sales, Ascensus.

In September 2009, Commonwealth launched the only vendor-agnostic, fee-based retirement plan platform from an independent broker/dealer-RIA, providing universal access to the retirement marketplace with the ability to offer both plan sponsor and participant-level advice. Aligning with fiduciary standards, qualified advisors can provide nondiscretionary services on a one-time or an ongoing basis.

About Ascensus

With more than 30 years of industry experience, Ascensus provides high-quality solutions for every segment of the retirement marketplace. Ascensus is a division of Crump Group, Inc., (CGI). CGI is a leading provider of retirement services as well as the largest and most diversified wholesale insurance distributor in the United States. As the nation's largest independent recordkeeper and administrator for retirement plans in the micro to large market segments and a leading provider of regulatory expertise, plan document services and participant enrollment support, Ascensus services over 27,000 defined contribution plans. The company's core capabilities encompass every component of a sophisticated retirement infrastructure, including administration, recordkeeping, ERISA consulting, compliance and sales support, trust and custody services, multilingual participant education programs, training and documentation. These solutions are offered with the open architecture investment capabilities that can be tailored to support the needs of institutional retirement plan providers, third party administrators, financial advisors and their clients. For more information, visit www.ascensus.com.

About Commonwealth Financial Network

Founded in 1979, Commonwealth Financial Network, member FINRA/SIPC, and a registered investment adviser, is celebrating its 30th anniversary as a leading, privately owned independent broker/dealer, with offices in Waltham, Massachusetts, and San Diego, California. The firm supports more than 1,200 independent registered representatives nationwide and makes available a comprehensive array of financial products and services. For more information, visit www.commonwealth.com.