This is part two of a Research Minute series about this study.Background: The DCIIA Retirement Research Center (RRC) recently published a new report, A Look Ahead: The Future of Collective Investment Trusts. The goal of this study was to evaluate the current state and future trajectory of collective investment trusts (CITs) in the defined contribution (DC) marketplace. Our findings revealed four key themes shaping the future of CITs, including cost savings, innovation, adoption, and education and transparency. This week’s Research Minute will take a closer look at two of these themes: adoption and transparency and education.Findings: CITs have gained significant traction, now holding 51% of target date fund assets (Morningstar). With this accelerated growth, two areas of opportunity have emerged: adoption and transparency and education.Adoption is expected to expand, driven by anticipated regulatory changes that would allow 403(b) plans to include CITs, potentially opening access to millions of plan participants. A majority of RRC survey respondents, including 91% of advisors and consultants and 84% of industry participants (e.g., recordkeepers and plan sponsors), expect CITs to become available to 403(b) plans within the next 18 months.The survey highlighted key barriers to CIT adoption, centering around transparency and education. Survey respondents cited increased administrative requirements, limited public access to information, and a lack of plan sponsor knowledge. These challenges stem primarily from transparency gaps, as CITs lack publicly available ticker symbols and offer limited access to investment data. As of 2024, only 17% of CIT providers have registered ticker symbols, and just 9% plan to do so in the future. While third-party databases have improved transparency, they remain largely inaccessible to most consumers.In addition, there remains a need for broader education about CITs, specifically about their structure, onboarding processes, and operational nuances. Large and mega plan sponsors report strong confidence in and familiarity with CITs, but small and mid-sized plans often express uncertainty, as do some advisors. Increasing awareness and understanding of CITs may accelerate adoption.Bottom Line: As CITs are widely expected to become available to 403(b) participants, increasing awareness and understanding among plan sponsors, especially small-to-mid-sized plans, and advisors, will be critical to accelerating adoption.