June 2022
13Jun

UK. FCA: Technology is both a risk and an opportunity

The Financial Conduct Authority’s chief data, information and intelligence officer Jessica Rusu has said technology can be “a force for good” but comes with many risks. Speaking at the Money 2020 Amsterdam event last week (June 8), Rusu explained that the increase in firms suffering from cyber-attacks demonstrates the risks that arise through innovation. “Looking through the lens of a regulator, having spent many years in big tech, fintech and traditional banking roles – I see that innovation and the role...

June 13, 2022
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13Jun

Nigeria. Micro Pension Plan as Buffer Against Old Age Poverty

The World Bank report of 2021 entitled, “Long Shadow of informality, Challenges and Policies,” estimated that over 80.4 percent of Nigeria’s labour force is in the informal sector. Persons involved in the sector do not have access to any formal pension protection or coverage for old age. The result is old age poverty, especially with people living longer due to improved medical care. To address the situation, the National Pension Commission (PenCom) introduced the Micro Pension Plan (MPP), a...

June 13, 2022
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10Jun

U.S. prohibits investors from buying Russian debt, stocks

U.S. investors are prohibited from buying both new and existing debt and equity securities issued by an entity in the Russian Federation, according to new Treasury Department guidance. The guidance released Monday clarifies that executive orders signed this year by President Joe Biden encompass bans on Americans purchasing all Russian debt and Russian company shares. U.S. investors are still allowed to hold Russian securities they already hold and purchasing shares in a U.S. fund that contains Russian debt or equity securities...

June 10, 2022
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10Jun

UK. BMW disputes inclusion on Make My Money Matter net zero target list

BMW has contested its inclusion on a list of the UK’s 20 largest pension schemes to have allegedly not set net zero targets. The roster, compiled by Make My Money Matter, covers schemes with more than £200bn of assets under management, the campaign said. “Investments this size potentially enable 24mn tonnes of carbon to enter our atmosphere every year,” it claimed. The campaign said that it has been contacting the schemes for a year. They are a mix of corporate and...

June 10, 2022
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10Jun

Five metrics to help investors point their investments toward impact

Do you come from the financial sector? Do you have a genuine interest in impact? Did your firm put you in charge of a small fund and ask you to explore impact investing, hoping you would learn and figure things out along the way? If you feel confident in your ability to make good financial decisions – but wish you had had a chance to develop an instinct for impact honed by years of interaction with impact organizations –...

June 10, 2022
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10Jun

US. Are Retirement Savings Tax Incentives Leaving the Middle Class Behind?

A new report by the National Institute on Retirement Security highlights the insufficiencies of current tax incentives in ensuring retirement security for the middle class. It includes marginal tax rates, retirement plan participation and income distribution on retirement savings levels as culpable factors. The report, “The Missing Middle: How Tax Incentives for Retirement Savings Leave Middle Class Families Behind,” also offers potential solutions that could enhance retirement security for middle-class families. Saving for retirement is one of the biggest financial challenges...

June 10, 2022
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09Jun

UK. TPR to finalise CDC code by 1 August; work to tackle pension scams continues

The Pensions Regulator (TPR) has confirmed that it is on track to finalise the collective defined contribution (CDC) code of practice by 1 August 2022, while further work on the issue of pension scams will be published "in due course". Speaking at the Pensions Age Northern Conference 2022, TPR lead investment consultant, Fred Berry, confirmed that TPR has been analysing industry feedback following its consultation on the draft code of practice earlier this year. Industry experts previously urged TPR to publish...

June 9, 2022
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09Jun

Expert panel: Is risk management the new frontier in pension governance?

The importance of risk management isn’t new for the majority of defined benefit pension plan sponsors and administrators. The impact of long-term interest rates, market volatility, changing demographics and increasing longevity, inflation concerns, geopolitical events and other large economic, environmental and social factors are all contributing to the need to manage the financial risks associated with sponsoring and managing a pension plan. Pension regulators have increased their focus on risk management as a way to address investment risk and promote plan...

June 9, 2022
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09Jun

Hong Kong passes long-awaited labour bill to scrap MPF offsetting mechanism, protecting workers’ pensions

Move ends decade-long debate between bosses and unions, preventing employers from dipping into staff pensions to cover severance and long-service payments Three legislators from pro-business Liberal Party were among those who opposed bill Hong Kong’s legislature has passed a long-awaited labour bill that will stop bosses from dipping into staff pensions to cover severance and long-service payments, ensuring the city’s workers have better retirement protection. The Legislative Council on Thursday voted 72-5 to approve the Employment and Retirement Schemes Legislation...

June 9, 2022
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09Jun

US. Senate committee approves nominees to Fed, SEC

The Senate Banking Committee on Wednesday advanced a Federal Reserve Board of Governors nominee and two Securities and Exchange Commission nominees. Michael S. Barr, President Joe Biden's nominee as the Fed's vice chairman for supervision, and Jaime E. Lizarraga and Mark T. Uyeda, the president's nominees to the SEC, were each approved by the committee Wednesday. The three nominees testified jointly before the committee in May. Mr. Barr, a law professor at the University of Michigan who served as the Treasury...

June 9, 2022
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