Ascensus Acquires Baden Retirement Plan Services.

DRESHER, Pa. -- Ascensus; 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; announced today that it has acquired Baden Retirement Plan Services (Baden) from Clark & Wamberg LLC (who was advised on the transaction by Hales & Company). Established in 1991, Baden, a third party administrator with offices in Fort Wayne and Indianapolis, Indiana, serves 1,500 plan sponsors in 48 states with primarily a Mid-West focus.

"Baden is a natural fit--both culturally and financially. Offering local administration-only services is a complementary business for Ascensus and will enhance our growth opportunities," commented Neil Smith, Senior Vice President, Ascensus. "And, like Ascensus, Baden takes great pride in providing the highest levels of service to its clients every day."

Existing employees of Baden along with the current management structure will remain with the business and operate as a separate unit within Ascensus. Bob Guillocheau, President, Ascensus, explained, "At Ascensus, we remain committed to being an industry leader. The acquisition of Baden Retirement Plan Services is just another step in our long history of providing flexible solutions to our clients."

About Ascensus

With nearly 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., 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 26,000 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 Baden Retirement Plan Services

Baden Retirement Plan Services is an independent third party administrator of tax qualified defined contribution plans, serving clients across the United States from its offices in Fort Wayne and Indianapolis, Indiana. The firm is not associated with any particular investment fund and does not manage assets; its fees are based on administration services provided. For more information, visit www.badenrps.com.