According to PLANSPONSOR's just-released annual recordkeeping survey, total assets for 401(k) and other defined contribution plans at the end of 2010 exceeded $4 trillion, well beyond the previous high of $3.72 trillion in 2007, and 14% higher than 2009's total.

According to Quinn Keeler, head of Research at Asset International, the number of 401(k) and other defined contribution plan participants also hit new highs in 2010 with more than 82 million participants, up 1.9% from the prior year. The number of new plans also increased incrementally.

Nevin Adams, editor-in-chief of PLANSPONSOR, noted that the greater number of employees participating in 401(k) and other defined contribution plans may have been spurred by an increase in automatic enrollment programs. "In an ideal world, all employees would decide on their own volition to save, but in many cases that simply is not reality," he said.

Adams continued: "Although the good news in this year's survey is welcome, it does not give us a reason to be complacent. There is a consensus among benefits professionals and plan advisers that many participants need to significantly increase their savings from current levels in order to afford a comfortable retirement and avoid the risk of running out of money."