When a company establishes a retirement plan, they can either establish a trust to handle the funds or handle the funds themselves (most large firms

When a company establishes a retirement plan, they can either establish a trust to handle the funds or handle the funds themselves (most large firms entrust the handling and investment of the plan's funds to a third party). What is your opinion as to whether the funds in the plan should be part of a company's financial balance sheet or a separate entity and not part of the company's financials? If they are part of the financials what is it saying as to the ownership of the funds?