June 2026

Pensions UK backs action on adequacy as retirement living costs increase

The latest Retirement Living Standards (RLS) update from Pensions UK has highlighted the scale of the retirement savings challenge facing UK workers, as the Pensions Commission considers whether minimum automatic enrolment contribution rates should rise in future. The annual standards, calculated by the Centre for Research in Social Policy at Loughborough University, show that a minimum retirement lifestyle now costs £13,900 (€16,000) a year for a single-person household and £22,500 for a two-person household. A ‘moderate’ lifestyle costs £32,700 and...

Canada. Pension funds creating social infrastructure, but measurement of impact is required: ICPM

Pension funds can enhance society in a way that doesn’t have to interfere with their fiduciary integrity and financial sustainability, according to a new report from the International Centre for Pension Management. After working on a social infrastructure paper and a roundtable discussion, what at first seemed as a one-and-done presentation became an international working group at the ICPM, according to Gareth Gibbins, a pension and policy expert who co-authored the report and is a member of the working group. Social...

How to turn retirement savings into reliable income

Retirement planning ultimately comes down to one question: How can you turn your savings into income that supports the life you want? The challenge isn’t just saving enough—it’s whether those savings can provide reliable income tailored to your needs and priorities while accounting for the risks of unpredictable markets and life events. Why turning retirement savings into income can be difficult Retirement planning is inherently personal, such that no two retirements look exactly alike. Two investors with similar account balances may...

Germany’s 2027 pension shake-up: who wins and who loses?

Germany’s life insurance sector is facing its most significant competitive disruption in a generation, according to financial analytics firm Kidbrooke. With landmark pension reform legislation now confirmed, incumbent insurers have a narrowing window to modernise their digital infrastructure or risk being outpaced by nimbler rivals on day one of the new market. The reform centres on the Altersvorsorgedepot, a new state-subsidised private pension savings account passed by the Bundestag in March 2026 and approved by the Bundesrat on 8 May 2026,...

Pension funds manage trillions and most still underestimate their social role: report

Pension funds collectively manage more than US$56tn in assets, serve hundreds of millions of members worldwide, and, according to a new report, most still do not recognize the full scope of what they already do. The International Centre for Pension Management released Social Infrastructure Blueprint: A Roadmap for Pension Funds on June 1, arguing that pension funds function as social infrastructure providers whether they acknowledge it or not. The report said failing to recognise that role carries real institutional risk. Gibbins said aging populations and rising inequality...

South Korea. [Retirement Pension Investment Strategy] “During Booms, Focus on Indexes… Systematic Investing Is Key to Beating Volatility”

Last year, for the first time ever, the accumulated amount of retirement pension funds in Korea surpassed 500 trillion won, illustrating the continuous growth of the domestic retirement pension market. In addition, the Korean stock market has been experiencing a record-breaking bull run, and the domestic exchange-traded fund (ETF) market has also expanded to 500 trillion won, leading to greater public interest in financial investment than ever before. However, despite this rapid growth, the polarization of returns among retirement...

Nigeria. Unremitted pensions: The silent threat to workers’ retirement security

For millions of Nigerian workers enrolled under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS), monthly pension deductions are expected to provide financial security after retirement. However, a growing challenge within the system is threatening that promise: The persistent failure of some employers to remit pension contributions deducted from employees’ salaries. Despite nearly two decades of pension reform and significant growth in pension assets, non-remittance of pension contributions remains one of the biggest compliance concerns facing Nigeria’s pension industry. The practice cuts across...

US. Company Pension Funds Stuffed With Bonds Ease Up on Debt Buying

A key source of demand for corporate bonds may be fading now that managers of company pension funds have more than enough money on hand to pay their retirees. Company-sponsored plans that had struggled in past years to keep up with their obligations in an era of low interest rates have gotten a boost from a decade of strong equity returns. Many plowed those gains into bonds in more recent years as yields rose. The trade allowed managers to lock...

UK. Around one in eight young adults feel pension engagement is ‘pointless’

Around one in eight (12 per cent) young adults, equivalent to approximately 2.2 million people, feel engaging with their pension is pointless because they will never be able to retire, research from People’s Pension has shown. It described this group as ‘Nerds’ – the Never Ever Retiring Demographic – and warned the industry was failing to connect with them. The research found that 47 per cent of young adults aged 18 to 27 were not engaged with their pension, and 12...

Thailand pilots strategic compliance planning to strengthen protection for domestic workers

Labour inspection in private homes presents unique challenges. Unlike a factory or a construction site, domestic workers are dispersed across thousands of households, worker locations may not be readily available, and access may be restricted in private residences. For the roughly 125,000 registered migrant domestic workers in Thailand, largely women from Lao People’s Democratic Republic and Myanmar, and many more in irregular status — these barriers can leave them vulnerable and difficult to reach through conventional labour inspection methods. That...