According to FINRA, Park Avenue Securities LLC (CRD #46173), based in New York, New York, was censured and fined $125,000 for supervisory failures related to mutual fund share class recommendations to retirement plan customers. The firm consented to these sanctions without admitting or denying the findings. FINRA found that the firm's supervisory system and written supervisory procedures (WSPs) were not reasonably designed to achieve compliance with FINRA Rule 2111 or the Care Obligation of Regulation Best Interest (Reg BI) as they pertain to mutual fund share class recommendations for retirement plan customers. Specifically, when retirement plan customers did not qualify for a Class A sales charge waiver, the firm's WSPs failed to describe the steps for evaluating whether recommending Class A or Class C shares was in the customer's best interest when the customer was eligible to purchase Class R shares. Class R shares are specifically designed for retirement plan accounts and often carry lower fees than Class A or Class C shares. The firm did not assess whether it would have been better for certain retirement plan customers to purchase Class R shares and did not provide supervisors with the guidance or information necessary to make this assessment. As a result of these supervisory weaknesses, the firm failed to identify retirement plan customers who purchased Class A or C shares when they were eligible to purchase, and would have benefited from purchasing, Class R shares. These purchases caused customers to incur $91,344.52 in either additional operating fees for Class C shares or front-end sales charges for Class A shares. The firm has already paid this amount in restitution. By failing to establish and enforce WSPs reasonably designed to comply with Reg BI, the firm also violated Reg BI's Compliance Obligation. The firm has since revised its supervisory system and its supervision of mutual fund share class recommendations for retirement plan customers. For investors in retirement plans, this case highlights the importance of understanding mutual fund share classes. Different share classes of the same fund can have significantly different fee structures, and the right share class can meaningfully impact long-term returns. Investors should ask their advisors about all available share classes.