Retirement Plans

Defined Contribution Savings Plan

We sponsor a 401(k) Plan for U.S. employees. Employees are immediately eligible to make contributions to the plan and are also eligible for an employer contribution match at an amount equal to 100.0% of the first 6.0% of eligible employee contributions. Savings plan expense included in compensation and benefits expense in the Consolidated Statements of Income was $14 million for the year ended December 31, 2018, $13 million for 2017 and $11 million for 2016.

Pension and Supplemental Executive Retirement Plans

We maintain non-contributory, defined-benefit pension plans, non-qualified SERPs for certain senior executives and other post-retirement benefit plans for eligible employees in the U.S., collectively referred to as the Nasdaq Benefit Plans. Our pension plans and SERPs are frozen. Future service and salary for all participants do not count toward an accrual of benefits under the pension plans and SERPs. Most employees outside the U.S. are covered by local retirement plans or by applicable social laws. Benefits under social laws are generally expensed in the periods in which the costs are incurred. The total expense for these plans is included in compensation and benefits expense in the Consolidated Statements of Income and was $22 million in 2018, $21 million in 2017 and $23 million in 2016.

Nasdaq recognizes the funded status of the Nasdaq Benefit Plans, measured as the difference between the fair value of the plan assets and the benefit obligation, in the Consolidated Balance Sheets. During the third quarter of 2018, we contributed $22 million to our U.S. defined-benefit pension plans. This contribution increased the funded status of these plans to approximately 100.0%. The funded status related to the SERP was underfunded by $28 million as of December 31, 2018. As of December 31, 2017, the funded status related to the Nasdaq Benefit Plans was underfunded by $60 million and was underfunded by $59 million as of December 31, 2016. The underfunded liability for the above plans is included in accrued personnel costs and other non-current liabilities in the Consolidated Balance Sheets. The fair value of the plans' assets was $94 million as of December 31, 2018 and $79 million as of December 31, 2017 and the benefit obligation was $122 million as of December 31, 2018 and $139 million as of December 31, 2017. The plan assets of the Nasdaq Benefit Plans are invested per target allocations adopted by Nasdaq’s Pension and 401(k) Committee and are primarily invested in collective fund investments that have underlying investments in fixed income securities. The collective fund investments are valued at net asset value which is a practical expedient to estimate fair value.

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss

As of December 31, 2018, accumulated other comprehensive

loss for the Nasdaq Benefit Plans was $22 million reflecting an unrecognized net loss of $28 million, partially offset by an income tax benefit of $6 million, primarily due to our pension

plans.

Estimated Future Benefit Payments

We expect to make the following benefit payments to participants in the next ten fiscal years under the Nasdaq Benefit Plans:



	Pension		SERP		Post-retirement		Total
Fiscal Year Ended:	(in millions)
2019	$	4	$	2	$	—	$	6
2020	5		7		—		12
2021	4		2		—		6
2022	5		2		—		7
2023	5		2		—		7
2024 through 2028	29		10		1		40
	$	52	$	25	$	1	$	78