July 2017

03Jul

UK pension consultants prepare for era of no-nonsense

They kept a low profile as banks and other pillars of the finacial services industry were upbraided by regulators. Now the consultants who influence how trillions of pounds of pensions are invested are finally under pressure. Any hopes the industry had of avoiding a full-scale antitrust probe were dashed last week by the City watchdog. Dominated by three big players - Mercer, Aon Hewitt and Willis Towers Watson - consultants had avoided the gaze of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), despite...

July 3, 2017
News, Slider
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02Jul

Problems and demographic policies in Europe. The Role of Cities

By Gérard-François Dumont (University of Paris 4 Sorbonne) Demographic changes are often unknown because they are part of long-term logics; Yet the future of European societies is in the civil states of its various countries. In the first part, we must first analyze the general demographic changes, in particular with regard to the natural increase in Europe, and then the changes in the geography of the population linked to changes in urbanization. Knowledge of the facts will then allow us...

July 2, 2017
Aging, Articles, Labor Market,
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02Jul

Income and Subjective Well-Being: Evidence from Singapore's First National Non-Contributory Pension

By Yanying Chen & Yi Jin Tan (Singapore Management University) Using a new monthly longitudinal survey of elderly Singaporeans, we precisely time and study the announcement and disbursement effects of an exogeneous permanent income shock on a broad range of subjective well-being domains. The source of this permanent income shock is a new means-tested non-contributory pension, the Silver Support Scheme (SSS). Using a difference-in-differences strategy, we find that pension recipients experienced improved life satisfaction upon announcement of the SSS; this...

July 2, 2017
Articles, Investing, Labor Market, Savings,
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02Jul

Income and Subjective Well-Being: Evidence from Singapore’s First National Non-Contributory Pension

By Yanying Chen & Yi Jin Tan (Singapore Management University) Using a new monthly longitudinal survey of elderly Singaporeans, we precisely time and study the announcement and disbursement effects of an exogeneous permanent income shock on a broad range of subjective well-being domains. The source of this permanent income shock is a new means-tested non-contributory pension, the Silver Support Scheme (SSS). Using a difference-in-differences strategy, we find that pension recipients experienced improved life satisfaction upon announcement of the SSS; this...

July 2, 2017
Articles, Investing, Labor Market, Savings,
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02Jul

PEPP – Towards a Harmonized European Legislative Framework for Personal Pensions

By Hans van Meerten & Sebastiaan Niels Hooghiemstra LL.M (Utrecht University) In the last couple of years questions arose how the PEPP should ideally be regulated and the European Commission and various interest groups, till now, have not found a solution for all possible problems in developing a common regulatory framework yet. For that purpose, this Report focused on how the PEPP could ideally be regulated. It discussed the PEPP and the PPP, how PEPPs as a ‘wrapper product’ should be...

July 2, 2017
Adequacy, Articles, Corporate Governance, Pension design, ,
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June 2017

30Jun

US. Citing Advocate Ruling, Judge Signs Off On $4M ERISA Deal

An Illinois federal judge on Thursday gave the go-ahead to a $4 million settlement in a pension dispute between a Chicago-area hospital and a class of its employees, saying the deal is appropriate given the U.S. Supreme Court’s extension of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act’s church exemption. US District Judge Manish Shah said that the agreement, which puts to rest the employees’ claim that Holy Cross Hospital violated ERISA when it underfunded and then terminated their pension plan, was...

June 30, 2017
News
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30Jun

Pacific Alliance reaches tax accord for pension funds

The Pacific Alliance trade group said on Thursday it has reached a tax agreement for pension funds operating in the bloc's four nations in an effort to stimulate investment in infrastructure projects. The alliance, which comprises Colombia, Chile, Mexico and Peru, was formed in April 2011, aimed at improving trade flows and bolstering investment. Pension fund administrators in the four countries have about $450 billion to invest in sectors like highways and other infrastructure projects, Colombian Finance Minister Mauricio Cardenas told...

June 30, 2017
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30Jun

Chile. Ministro de Hacienda Valdés aseguró que críticas a las AFP son “algo injustas”

Durante la primera jornada del Chile Day en Londres, el ministro de Hacienda, Rodrigo Valdés, comentó el rechazo que generan las AFP en los chilenos. En entrevista con CNN Chile, el secretario de Estado indicó que "me parece algo injusto, porque (las AFP) han hecho el trabajo que se les ha encargado". "Podrían tener más competencia, o ser más amables con el sistema, pero es una industria que ha funcionado y hay otras que creo están más al debe en su...

June 30, 2017
Noticias
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30Jun

Romanian stocks after tax and pension policy shock

The Romanian leu and stocks firmed slightly on Friday, recouping some of their losses from Thursday when the new government was voted in, as the new prime minister denied they were planning to dismantle private pension funds. Romanian markets plunged on Thursday after the ruling Social Democrats announced an unexpected tax overhaul, which was not discussed with business figures beforehand, and the new finance minister said they were planning to dismantle a multi-billion private pension scheme. Hungary and Poland had taken...

June 30, 2017
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30Jun

FAQs to better understand the new Pan-European Pension Personal Product

What is a pan-European personal pension product (PEPP)? The PEPP is a voluntary personal pension scheme that will offer consumers a new pan-European option to save for retirement. This new type of product is designed to give savers more choice when they are putting money aside for old age and provide them with more competitive products. It could be offered by a broad range of financial companies such as insurance companies, banks, occupational pension funds, certain investment firms and asset...

June 30, 2017
News
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