Human Interest Offers 3% Cash Back for New Retirement Savers


Human Interest Inc., a 401(k) provider based in San Francisco, is offering a 3% cash-back reward to participants who start saving for retirement.

The new incentive is available to all eligible participants on the Human Interest platform making the U.S. median wage of $60,000 or less. Plan participants in this wage bracket will hear directly from Human Interest. Employers don’t have to advertise the program to plan participants, though they can reinforce it should they like. The program is accessible across the U.S.

“We see the urgent need for more working Americans to save for retirement,” said Jeff Schneble, Human Interest’s CEO, in a statement. “We are using the same rewards model that people enjoy in their daily lives, akin to cash-back credit cards, to encourage employees to actively save for a healthy retirement. That is why we are now the first and only retirement provider to offer a cash-back program to incentivize individuals to save.”

Human Interest only offers employer-sponsored 401(k) plans. However, the plan sponsors do not need to opt into the program, as it is available to all individuals automatically who are on the Human Interest recordkeeping platform.

The cash back will be delivered in the form of a Visa gift card (cash equivalent) for those eligible. Individuals must initiate 8% or more deferrals between June 1, 2023, and January 1, 2024, for a consecutive 12-month period. It is a one-time gift card at the end of the 12-month time frame.

In addition, all Human Interest plan participants will get access to (k)ickstart, a financial wellness curriculum the company said outlines techniques to achieve a financially secure retirement.

Last year, investing platform Robinhood entered the retirement savings space with an individual retirement account offering a 1% match to whoever uses it for at least five years. The firm offered a traditional Roth IRA that would match 1% of every dollar contributed even if the investor did not have an employer.