March 2025

Most young Brits have no pension plan… despite hoping to retire EARLY

Millions of young Brits have zero pension plan despite believing they will retire young and be easily able to travel the world, new research has revealed. The damning YouGov findings by savings and investment business M&G have shown that more than three quarters of 18 to 24 year olds, alongside nearly half of 25 to 34 year old's, have not started making a financial plan for their post-work life. However, a substantial number of the 2,000 young people surveyed said that...

Singapore’s population is aging fast. It hopes AI can help manage its elderly care

From listening devices that detect falls to “patient sitter” systems in hospitals and robots helping with exercise in care homes, Singapore is looking to artificial intelligence to help manage the health of its elderly population. By 2030, a quarter of Singaporeans will be 65 or older — in 2010, the figure was one in 10 — and it’s estimated that around 6,000 nurses and care staff will need to be hired annually to meet Singapore’s health workforce targets. Technology is much needed to help fill the...

AFC chief pushes to unlock billions from African pension funds

The African Finance Corporation said it is accelerating efforts to mobilise the continent’s own money for investments, and tapping investors in the Middle East and Asia, as developing nations grapple with seismic shifts in geopolitics and funding flows. Samaila Zubairu, chief executive of the AFC – a development finance institution owned by Nigeria’s central bank and other African financial institutions – said in an interview the lender is ready to weather a world in which the United States and Europe...

On International Women’s Day, let’s focus on the gender pension gap

By Ivana Zanardo   Women in the workforce have made significant strides in recent decades: the gender wage gap is shrinking and more women hold a growing share of senior leadership positions at Canadian companies. But as we celebrate International Women’s Day, there’s another gap that should get more attention – the gender pension gap. Despite advancements made in the workplace, according to Stats Canada, women still face an annual income gap of 29 per cent. And what’s more worrisome is that we...

US stock market meltdown hits UK pensions as Donald Trump’s tariffs spark panic

US shares have continued to fall as investors fear Donald Trump's trade wars will cause huge damage to the American economy. The decline in the value of US-based businesses will hit millions of people with savings in pension funds in countries such as the UK as well as across America. This is because many funds from across the world are invested at least partly in the US. The NASDAQ market, which has a particular focus on technology stocks, has fallen...

Women’s Employment Rate in Urban India Rises by 10% in Six Years: Report

Women’s employment in urban India has increased by 10% over the last six years (2017-18 to 2023-24), according to a report released ahead of International Women’s Day 2025. The white paper, published by the Great Lakes Institute of Management, Chennai, highlights that women in their 40s have the highest employment rate among urban women, reaching 38.3% in 2023-24. Challenges Persist Despite Employment Growth Despite this positive trend, the report warns of several pressing challenges, including: Underutilization of educated women’s skills Lack of flexible work arrangements Commuting challenges Risk of a diversity backlash According to the findings, over 89...

Switzerland raises concerns over handing pension fund management to US banks

For all intents and purposes, the funds appear to have been well-placed, yielding a return of 7.33% last year, thanks to positions in bonds, equities, oil and gold. Compenswiss, an independent public body that manages the assets (46.1 billion Swiss francs, or 48.9 billion euros) of Swiss social security insurers, has been pleased. "At the end of 2024, all asset classes were clearly in positive territory," said institution director Eric Breval three weeks ago, while presenting its annual results....

Canada’s biggest pension fund calls for economic diversification as tariffs hit

Canada must diversify its economy and position itself as more competitive on the global stage if tariffs promised by U.S. President Donald Trump take effect, Canada's biggest pension fund said on Tuesday. Edwin Cass, chief investment officer of the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, said his country's economy was "tied at the hip" to the U.S. after Trump said on Monday 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico would go into effect almost immediately. "One of the things we obviously should have been doing...

Women in Hong Kong face huge retirement income shortfall, Fidelity study shows

For nearly half the working women in Hong Kong, their main concern is insufficient income after retiring, according to one of the largest managers of the Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF), the city’s compulsory retirement scheme. Women in Hong Kong generally retire earlier than men at 62 and expect to incur an average monthly expense of HK$24,235 (US$3,120) in retirement, according to Fidelity International’s Asia-Pacific Investor Study released on Thursday, ahead of International Women’s Day on Saturday. The amount accounts for nearly 70 per...

UK. Pensions: New warning to women who risk running out of money

Women have been issued a pension warning as new research revealed they risk emptying their pension pots 14 years too soon. The research, released ahead of International Women’s Day (Saturday March 8) indicated that, based on current pension withdrawal rates, women could empty their private pension savings by the age of 73. Legal & General (L&G), which published the research, said that, with the average life expectancy of a 60-year-old woman in the UK sitting at 87, some female retirees could be left with a...