Illinois › Finance and insurance › 5,000 to 24,999 participants
Form 5500 statement · plan year 1 Jan 2024 to 31 Dec 2024
Discover Financial Services Pension Plan
Sponsored by Discover Financial Services, Riverwoods, IL
Form 5500 information is as filed by the plan administrator with the Department of Labor and may be amended. Figures reflect the plan year shown, not current balances. Form 5500 contains no individual account balances. Look up the original filing at EFAST2.
Discover Financial Services of Riverwoods, Illinois sponsors Discover Financial Services Pension Plan, a defined benefit pension plan. Its Form 5500 for the plan year ending 31 Dec 2024 shows 11,889 participants (2,469 active) and $482M in net assets.
Net assets came to $40,531 per participant, well below the $87,623 median for defined benefit plans with 5,000 to 24,999 participants and well below the $119,983 median for defined benefit plans in finance and insurance. The figure is an average across everyone in the plan, including former employees with small balances; Form 5500 holds no individual account data.
Schedule C lists 4 service provider organisations paid $5,000 or more, with reported compensation of $2.2M: $188 per participant, below the same-size median of $232. Administrative expenses charged to the plan were $3.5M. Schedule C does not capture every cost: fees netted from fund returns and fees the employer pays directly are outside it.
Across the filings on record, net assets went from $300M in 2009 to $482M in 2024 (up 61%), and participants from 15,459 to 11,889 (down 23%).
The independent accountant's opinion on the financial statements was unmodified (unqualified), from an audit whose scope was limited under ERISA section 103(a)(3)(C) to exclude investment information certified by a bank or insurer.
Compared with similar plans
| Measure | This plan | Same size | Same industry | All US DB plans |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Net assets per participant | $40,531 | $87,623 | $119,983 | $86,221 |
| Employer contributions per active participant | — | $9,468 | $7,849 | $10,244 |
| Schedule C compensation per participant | $188 | $232 | $352 | $344 |
| Schedule C compensation, share of net assets | 0.47% | 0.30% | 0.32% | 0.42% |
| Administrative expenses per participant | $294 | $396 | $433 | $527 |
Peer columns are medians for plan year 2024 across defined benefit plans with 100 or more participants: 5,000 to 24,999 participants (651 plans), finance and insurance (690) and all US plans (5,308). Fee medians cover plans that report an amount.
Trend by plan year
| Plan year | Participants | Net assets | Per participant | Employer contributions | Participant contributions | Schedule C compensation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 11,889 | $482M | $40,531 | — | — | $2.2M |
| 2023 | 12,035 | $518M | $43,040 | — | — | $1.7M |
| 2022 | 12,167 | $497M | $40,833 | $115M | — | $1.7M |
| 2021 | 12,295 | $594M | $48,349 | — | — | $1.9M |
| 2020 | 12,467 | $612M | $49,065 | — | — | $1.9M |
| 2019 | 12,651 | $528M | $41,773 | — | — | $1.8M |
| 2018 | 12,833 | $454M | $35,402 | — | — | $1.4M |
| 2017 | 13,006 | $509M | $39,120 | $85.0M | — | $1.3M |
| 2016 | 13,201 | $383M | $29,030 | — | — | $1.1M |
| 2015 | 13,393 | $377M | $28,178 | — | — | $1.0M |
| 2014 | 13,677 | $406M | $29,697 | — | — | $1.4M |
| 2013 | 13,920 | $368M | $26,407 | — | — | $1.6M |
| 2012 | 14,150 | $369M | $26,090 | — | — | $2.3M |
| 2011 | 14,373 | $341M | $23,713 | — | — | $2.1M |
| 2010 | 14,877 | $318M | $21,390 | — | — | $2.3M |
| 2009 | 15,459 | $300M | $19,387 | $0 | — | $1.9M |
Years in which the plan filed the full Form 5500 with 100 or more participants, from 2009. Plan year is the year in which the plan year began.
Statement for the year
- Net assets, beginning of year$517,991,267
- Employer contributions—
- Participant contributions—
- Rollovers and other contributions—
- Total contributions$0
- Total income, including investment results−$10,624,429
- Benefits paid$22,000,400
- Administrative expenses$3,493,463
- Total expenses$25,493,863
- Net income−$36,118,292
- Net transfers$0
- Net assets, end of year$481,872,975
Participants
- Active participants2,469
- Retired or separated, receiving benefits3,071
- Retired or separated, entitled to future benefits6,069
- Total participants, end of year11,889
Fees and service providers
| Organisation | Services reported | Direct | Indirect |
|---|---|---|---|
| Goldman Sachs Asset Management, LP | Investment management | $1,235,487 | $0 |
| Alight Solutions LLC | Recordkeeping and information management | $619,173 | $1,391 |
| Mercer Inc. | Actuarial; Consulting (general) | $264,598 | $0 |
| BNY Mellon | Trustee (bank, trust company, or similar financial institution) | $119,951 | $0 |
Schedule C, Part I line 2: providers that received $5,000 or more, with the form's own service codes. Individuals named on Schedule C (plan employees, individual trustees) are never shown and their compensation is excluded. Eligible indirect compensation disclosed by formula carries no dollar amount. See how to read Schedule C fees.
Administrative expenses on Schedule H
- Other administrative expenses$1,254,254
- Investment advisory and management fees$1,235,487
- Contract administrator fees$619,173
- Actuarial fees$264,598
- Trustee and custodial fees$119,951
- Total administrative expenses$3,493,463
Investment structure
Assets at year end by Schedule H category. The form shows the kind of vehicle holding the money, not the funds on the menu.
- Common/collective trusts$448M · 92.8%
- U.S. Government securities$18.8M · 3.9%
- Cash (interest and non-interest bearing)$16.1M · 3.3%
- Receivables$80K · 0.0%
- Registered investment companies (mutual funds)$1 · 0.0%
Audit and compliance answers, as filed
- Accountant's opinionUnmodified (unqualified)
- Audit scope limited under ERISA section 103(a)(3)(C)Yes
- Accounting firmCrowe LLP
- Participant contributions reported as transmitted lateNo
- Covered by a fidelity bondYes, $50,000,000
- Blackout period during the year—
These are the plan administrator's own answers on Schedule H, Part IV. A reported late transmittal is the filer's disclosure of a timing lapse, usually corrected through the Department of Labor's voluntary program; the amount is the total involved, not a loss.
Plan characteristics
1ABenefits are primarily pay related1IFrozen plan3FPlan sponsor(s) received services of leased employees3HPlan sponsor(s) is (are) a member(s) of a controlled group
Codes entered on Form 5500 line 8a, with the labels from the official instructions. Business code 522210: Credit Card Issuing.
Other plans of Discover Financial Services
| Plan | Participants | Net assets |
|---|---|---|
| Discover Financial Services 401(k) Plan | 27,261 | $3.21B |
Similar plans in Illinois
| Plan | Sponsor | Participants | Net assets | Per participant |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carpenters Pension Fund of Illinois | Board of Trustees of Carpenters Pension Fund of Illinois | 17,735 | $2.23B | $125,643 |
| Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Employees' Pension Plan | Arthur J. Gallagher (Illinois), LLC | 5,137 | $313M | $60,991 |
| BMO U.S. Pension Plan | BMO Financial Corp. | 18,124 | $1.25B | $68,839 |
| Old Republic International Employees Retirement Plan | Old Republic International Corp. | 4,693 | $519M | $110,648 |
| Zurich American Insurance Company Retirement Account Plan | Zurich American Insurance Company | 18,921 | $1.20B | $63,657 |
| Pension Plan for Employees of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Inc. | Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Inc. | 3,557 | $368M | $103,483 |
Defined benefit plans in finance and insurance closest in size.
Questions and answers
How big is Discover Financial Services Pension Plan?
11,889 participants at the end of the plan year ending 31 Dec 2024, of whom 2,469 were active employees, with net assets of $481,872,975. Among defined benefit plans that places it in the 5,000 to 24,999 participants band, which held 651 plans in plan year 2024.
What does Discover Financial Services contribute per participant?
This filing has no Schedule H financial statement, so employer contributions are not reported here.
What fees does the plan pay and how do they compare?
Schedule C reports $2,240,600 in compensation to service provider organisations, $188 per participant or 0.47% of net assets. The same-size median among plans reporting any Schedule C compensation was $232 per participant. Administrative expenses on Schedule H were $3,493,463. Investment costs deducted inside mutual funds and other pooled vehicles are not itemised on Form 5500, so these figures are a floor rather than a full cost.
Who runs the plan?
The sponsor is Discover Financial Services. Recordkeeping or administration: Alight Solutions LLC. Investment advisory or management: Goldman Sachs Asset Management, LP. Trustee or custodian: BNY Mellon. The financial statements were audited by Crowe LLP. Form 5500 also names the plan administrator's signer and other individuals; this site publishes organisations only.
Was the audit opinion unqualified?
The filing reports an unmodified (unqualified) opinion from a limited-scope audit, in which the accountant did not audit investment information certified by a bank or insurance company. Unmodified (formerly "unqualified") is the standard clean opinion.
How current is this, and does it show my balance?
This is the Form 5500 for the plan year 1 Jan 2024 to 31 Dec 2024, received by the Department of Labor on 6 Oct 2025. Filings are due seven months after the plan year ends, or nine and a half with an extension, so the public record always runs a year or more behind. It contains plan-level totals only: no individual balances, contributions or names of participants exist in the data.
Provenance
Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration, Form 5500 research files (Form 5500, Schedule H, Schedule C) for plan years 2009 to 2025, public domain, with filings received through 24 Aug 2026. This page shows the latest filing on record for EIN 36-2517428, plan 004, received 6 Oct 2025; an amended filing replaces it at the next build. Medians and percentiles are computed by this site; see the methodology. Report an error through corrections.