NEST 529 College Savings Program Achieves Two Milestones

Nationwide College Savings Program Reaches $4 Billion Assets, 250,000
Accounts

NORTH PLATTE, Neb.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Nebraska’s college savings program announced two significant growth
milestones today. For the first time, total assets in the Nebraska
Educational Savings Trust (NEST) have exceeded $4 billion, as of June
30, with total accounts exceeding a record 250,000.

“These are remarkable accomplishments for the NEST college savings
program,” Treasurer Don Stenberg said at a news conference at the North
Platte Regional Airport. “They reflect not only our hard work, careful
planning, and ongoing commitment, but also they confirm account owners’
confidence in our program. These numbers tell us that parents and
grandparents trust NEST with their hard-earned dollars and their
financial future.”

The total assets represent a 60 percent increase since 2011, when
Stenberg became State Treasurer and First National Bank of Omaha took
over as program manager. Total assets then were $2.5 billion. The number
of accounts has grown by 36 percent during that same time period, up
from 185,000 to 251,712.

“I have been saying for a long time that we have one of the best college
savings programs in the country. Our plans have been recognized
nationally through the years for cost, performance, reliability, and
fund selection,” Stenberg said. “We are very proud of our four
individual NEST college savings plans and the value and variety they
provide for families looking for wise, responsible, and effective ways
to save for the educational needs of the beneficiary.”

NEST offers four distinct plans: the NEST Direct College Savings Plan,
the NEST Advisor College Savings Plan, the TD Ameritrade 529 College
Savings Plan, and the State Farm College Savings Plan. The variety of
investment options offered by NEST allows families to choose the plan
that best fits the ages of their children, their budgets and investment
philosophies.

Among the national recognition NEST has received:

• As of the first quarter of 2016, the NEST Direct Plan was ranked fifth
  out of 55 direct-sold plans in one year performance by the popular
  website, savingforcollege.com. The NEST Advisor Plan placed seventh
  out of 31 advisor-sold plans in one-year investment performance.
• The NEST Direct plan and the NEST Advisor plan earned bronze ratings
  for 2015 from the independent investment research firm Morningstar.
  Morningstar cited generous tax benefits as boosting the appeal of
  bronze-rated plans.
• The NEST Direct and NEST Advisor plans have received the highest
  “5-Cap” rating in-state and “4.5 Cap” rating nationwide by
  savingforcollege.com.

“We are very proud of these milestones that NEST has achieved,” added
Deborah Goodkin, Managing Director, Savings Plans, First National Bank
of Omaha. “The accolades from the national experts are wonderful, but
it’s the growth in accounts and assets that is the ultimate achievement.
It means we’ve received the best type of praise: parent approval.”

To learn more about NEST, visit www.NEST529.com or
treasurer.nebraska.gov.

About NEST

NEST is a tax-advantaged 529 college savings plan and provides four
plans to help make saving for college simple and affordable: NEST Direct
College Savings Plan, the NEST Advisor College Savings Plan, the TD
Ameritrade 529 College Savings Plan, and the State Farm College Savings
Plan. The Nebraska State Treasurer serves as Program Trustee. First
National Bank of Omaha serves as Program Manager, and all investments
are approved by the Nebraska Investment Council. Families nationwide are
saving for college using Nebraska’s 529 College Savings Plans, which
have more than 250,000 accounts, including 73,000 in Nebraska. Visit
NEST529Direct.com, NEST529Advisor.com or treasurer.nebraska.gov for more
information.

About First National Bank of Omaha

First National Bank of Omaha is a subsidiary of First National of
Nebraska. First National of Nebraska is the largest privately owned
banking company in the United States. First National and its affiliates
have $20 billion in managed assets and 5,000 employee associates.
Primary banking offices are located in Nebraska, Colorado, Illinois,
Iowa, Kansas, South Dakota and Texas.

Investments Are Not FDIC Insured* No Bank, State or Federal Guarantee
May Lose Value
*Except the Bank Savings Individual
Investment Option

Contacts

Media:
The Rosen Group
Abby Berman Cohen
Vice
President
646-695-7044
abby@rosengrouppr.com
or
First
National Bank
Mary Hoffa
Director of Marketing
402-602-6549
mhoffa@fnni.com
or
Nebraska
State Treasurer’s Office
Jana Langemach
Director of
Communications
402-471-8884
Jana.langemach@nebraska.gov