Lincoln Financial Group Announces Launch of Financial Wellness Marketplace for Employer Customers

Available through Lincoln’s proprietary WellnessPATH® solution, the marketplace will connect employees with financial wellness resources, starting with student debt solutions in 2023.

Lincoln Financial Group’s (NYSE: LNC) Workplace Solutions business announced today an expansion of its financial wellness program with the launch of a new marketplace that connects individuals with partner companies that offer solutions to help improve financial wellness. Lincoln Financial’s propriety financial wellness tool, WellnessPATH®, already offers users a holistic financial picture along with a personalized plan of action. With the integration of the marketplace in 2023, users will now be able to access third-party solutions and resources that can help them on their financial wellness journey in one, easy-to-navigate, aggregated experience.

Lincoln will launch its financial wellness marketplace with a new partnership that will help employees and their families tackle student loan debt and savings. Candidly, a leading student debt management platform, offers users options to plan, borrow, repay and reassess their debt, and provides support and assistance with federal student loan forgiveness programs and applications.

Currently, student loan debt in America exceeds $1.77 trillion¹, and research from Lincoln Financial shows eight in 10 workers hold some form of debt, including credit card, mortgage and student loans². By offering support and financial wellness resources, employers can help ease some of the burden this debt may be causing. In fact, nearly all employees surveyed who have used financial wellness resources report a positive impact – and 42% say the impact has been significant³.

“Lincoln is committed to helping drive positive outcomes and make benefits more beneficial for employers, employees and their families,” said James Reid, executive vice president, president, Workplace Solutions, Lincoln Financial Group. “The resources and solutions that will be available through our new financial wellness marketplace, beginning with our newest partnership with Candidly, will offer employers a significant opportunity to improve employees’ financial health through every life stage, while also strengthening their business by helping them attract, retain and engage top talent.”

Candidly’s student debt platform helps users make progress on paying down student debt and also helps families plan for future expenses. Candidly’s suite of services includes:

• Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF): Enables borrowers to determine eligibility status and tracking for PSLF applications. The platform allows users to quickly and easily request employment certification and set up recertification reminders.
• Student loan dashboard: Users can manage and keep track of multiple loans through Candidly’s student loan dashboard. The dashboard offers a custom view of loan status, balance and monthly payments and access to tools and resources for borrowers.
• College planning: Explore strategies for college savings, finding scholarships and navigating financial aid. Users can also compare and apply for funds and access informative articles and how-to guides.

Saving, spending, debt and protection: How Lincoln WellnessPATH® can help

Lincoln continues to expand its financial wellness program through its proprietary financial wellness tool, Lincoln WellnessPATH®, available to all Workplace Solutions customers. Designed to improve financial health and management skills, the easy-to-use tool helps employees learn about investing, saving and budgeting with the ability to set goals and track their financial status. After completing a simple quiz, employees are given a personalized financial wellness score that is divided into four categories: spending, protection, debt and saving. WellnessPATH® features include:

• Actionable web content: Always-available web-based self-serve content, including articles, videos, calculators, gamified tools, worksheets and checklists.
• One-on-one support: Personalized education and support offered wherever and whenever users need it — in person, over the phone or via video chat.
• Personalized access: The interactive tool allows users to access aggregated accounts, in addition to goal setting and budget features that help users set and track progress toward personalized goals.
• NEW financial wellness marketplace: Beginning with Candidly in 2023, Lincoln will continue to add new partnership to its marketplace, helping connect employees with financial wellness resources and solutions to help them work toward their goals.

“We know employees are interested in improving their finances, but they need help navigating the competing financial priorities of today,” said Sharon Scanlon, senior vice president, Customer Experience and Transformation, Lincoln Financial Group. “Our newly expanded tools, solutions available through our marketplace and continued investments in financial wellness resources allow us to partner with employers to help more Americans take charge of their financial futures.”

Lincoln WellnessPATH® and the marketplace it will offer, starting with the partnership with Candidly, are just one part of the company’s robust benefit and protection offering to customers. Lincoln Financial is committed to offering new and innovative products and solutions, and continues to expand and enhance its workplace benefits and retirement savings offerings, helping more and more Americans plan for and achieve the financial future they envision.

About Lincoln Financial Group

Lincoln Financial Group provides advice and solutions that help people take charge of their financial lives with confidence and optimism. Today, approximately 16 million customers trust our retirement, insurance and wealth protection expertise to help address their lifestyle, savings and income goals, and guard against long-term care expenses. Headquartered in Radnor, Pennsylvania, Lincoln Financial Group is the marketing name for Lincoln National Corporation (NYSE:LNC) and its affiliates. The company had $270 billion in end-of-period account values as of September 30, 2022. Lincoln Financial Group is a committed corporate citizen included on major sustainability indices including the Dow Jones Sustainability Index North America and FTSE4Good and ranks among Newsweek’s Most Responsible Companies. Dedicated to diversity, equity and inclusion, we are included on transparency benchmarking tools such as the Corporate Equality Index, the Disability Equality Index and the Bloomberg Gender-Equality Index. Committed to providing our employees with flexible work arrangements, we were named to FlexJobs’ list of the Top 100 Companies to Watch for Remote Jobs in 2022. With a long and rich legacy of acting ethically, telling the truth and speaking up for what is right, Lincoln was recognized as one of Ethisphere’s 2022 World’s Most Ethical Companies®. We create opportunities for early career talent through our intern development program, which ranks among WayUp and Yello’s annual list of Top 100 Internship Programs. Learn more at: www.LincolnFinancial.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram. Sign up for email alerts at http://newsroom.lfg.com.

Candidly is not an affiliate of Lincoln Financial Group. Lincoln Financial Group and its financial professionals do not provide banking or lending services or advice related to such and are not responsible for, and make no representations or endorsements regarding, the quality, accuracy, or reliability of information provided by Candidly, its representatives, or its websites.

Lincoln Financial Group will receive a marketing distribution fee from Candidly if you choose to enroll in its services or apply for a student loan.

LCN-5346919-121222

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¹ Federal Reserve, as of 9/30/22: https://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/g19/current

² 2021 Lincoln Retirement Power® Study

³ Lincoln Financial, Wellness at Work Study 2022

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