May 2024
24May

UK. What could the general election mean for pensions, mortgages and investments?

Mortgage rates, pensions policy and investments could all be affected by the upcoming general election. Last night (May 21), prime minister Rishi Sunak called a general election for July 4, but what does this mean for people’s finances? All parties will need to set out their personal finance priorities which could include changes to pensions rules and may see some promised long-awaited reforms such as changes to auto-enrolment. The UK could also see impacts to mortgage rates and investments as well as...

May 24, 2024
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24May

How South Korea’s giant pension funds fell prey to $395m NDIS housing scam

James Charisiou was no novice at corporate finance. At KPMG, the Melburnian advised banks on big deals. On Friday, he was sentenced to 12 years in jail for the deal of his life – securing $395 million from South Korean investors to build specialist accommodation for use in the National Disability Insurance Scheme. If only any of it was real. The elaborate fraud rocked Australia’s property industry. Charisiou even used the names of some of the sector’s most prominent executives...

May 24, 2024
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24May

Most Australians still relying on government pension on retirement

A government pension or allowance was still the main source of personal income at retirement according to the latest statistics from the Australia Bureau of Statistics. Forty-three per cent of retirees relied on a government pension, with 27 per cent relying on superannuation, an annuity or private pension. Bjorn Jarvis, ABS head of labour statistics, said over the past decade the number of people who said they had no personal income has fallen from 25 per cent in 2012-13 down to...

May 24, 2024
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23May

There’s a bold fix to America’s broken retirement system

By Teresa Ghilarducci     In March, Blackrock CEO Larry Fink made headlines with a shareholder letter warning about our broken retirement system, noting that "nearly half of Americans aged 55 to 65 reported not having a single dollar saved in personal retirement accounts. Nothing in a pension. Zero in an IRA or 401(k).” The American worker knows the retirement system is broken and they don’t like it. In a recent national survey, 79% of those who responded said that America is facing a...

May 23, 2024
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23May

UK. Quarter of asset managers use AI in sustainability process

More than a quarter of asset managers are already using artificial intelligence in their sustainability processes. Aviva Investors' annual asset manager survey found 56 per cent had seen an increase in client interest in sustainability-focused investments, compared with 16 per cent who had seen a decrease in appetite. The survey spoke to 60 asset managers from around the world, representing £31.9tr. While 27 per cent of the managers said they already use generative AI in their sustainability process, a further 29 per cent...

May 23, 2024
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23May

Colombian House of Representatives to resume debate on pension reform

The Seventh Commission of the House of Representatives of Colombia will reopen the third debate on the pension reform presented by the Government that seeks to benefit thousands of elderly people in the country. 37 articles submitted to a vote were approved on Tuesday, with 17 votes in favor and four against, which means that approximately 39 percent of the proposal has the legislators’ approval. Although some congressmen from opposition parties such as Cambio Radical and Centro Democrático asked for time...

May 23, 2024
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23May

Dutch fund PGB ups ESG ante for a livable world

PGB Pensioendiensten, pension provider for Pensioenfonds PGB (PGB), the Netherlands €32 billion industry-wide pension fund, has rewritten its sustainable investment strategy. Backstopped by a new purpose to invest in a “liveable world” it has positioned investing sustainably at the centre of its strategy rather than as an “afterthought.” “For us, sustainability is an inseparable part of all our investments. We make an integrated assessment between return, risk, costs, and sustainability with every investment,” states the pension fund. The recently published strategy is rooted...

May 23, 2024
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23May

UK. Reforms to ‘unlock’ pension savings must not undermine financial stability, IMF warns

By Sophie Smith   Reforms to unlock pension savings for higher-return investments should not undermine financial stability or pensioner outcomes, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has said, also emphasising the need for broader pension adequacy improvements. In its concluding statement on the UK, the IMF argued that while there is a clear economic rationale for consolidating small pension funds, and potential benefits from encouraging the sector to invest more in higher-growth assets, realising these outcomes will take time and persistent efforts. For instance,...

May 23, 2024
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22May

US. NYC Pension to Invest $60 Million to Preserve Cheap Housing

New York City’s $86 billion pension fund for civil employees is investing in a nonprofit-led partnership that took on property loans tied to rent-controlled and rent-stabilized apartment buildings from the failed Signature Bank. New York City Employees’ Retirement System, or NYCERS, will invest as much as $60 million in a partnership, led by the Community Preservation Corp., that will preserve nearly 35,000 rent-stabilized units affected by the Signature Bank’s sudden collapse last March, city Comptroller Brad Lander said Tuesday. The...

May 22, 2024
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22May

UK. Equality regulator probing DWP over treatment of disabled benefits claimants

The equality regulator is investigating the Department for Work and Pensions over suspicions that its treatment of disabled benefits claimants broke equality laws. Work and Pensions Secretary Mel Stride and some of his predecessors are suspected to have violated the Equality Act 2010 while in charge of the DWP, the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) said on Wednesday. The regulator is looking at whether during health assessment determinations, which form part of the application process for some benefits, the DWP...

May 22, 2024
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