June 2021
01Jun

Germany plans pension taxation reform after election

Germany's Finance Ministry said on Monday it plans to reform the taxation of pensions after September's federal election, responding to the federal fiscal court's demand for an overhaul to avoid the double taxation of future retirement savings. "This is a proposed solution that we can imagine," State Secretary Rolf Boesinger said in Munich. He spoke after the court dismissed one couple's double taxation complaint but said future pensioners were at risk of having to pay taxes twice under existing transitional regulations. The...

June 1, 2021
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01Jun

Bulgaria Is Ageing Fast, 31 Percent of Population Will be over 65 in 2070

The Bulgarian population is ageing and this will cause major problems in the payment of pensions in the coming years. The share of people over the age of 65 relative to the total population will increase from about 21% in 2019 to 31% in 2070. This is written in the Country's Convergence Programme, which was recently sent to the European Commission, informs Trud daily. The Bulgarian pension system faces serious demographic challenges, the document says. Forecasts from the European statistical...

June 1, 2021
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01Jun

Ghana. NPRA advises commercial drivers to join third tier pensions

The National Pensions Regulatory Authority (NPRA) has called on commercial drivers to register and benefit from the third tier pension scheme for a secured future. Mr Samuel Baffour Awuah, Corporate Affairs Officer of the NPRA who made the call said the third tier pension provided decent retirement packages for beneficiaries. Speaking at separate sensitization exercises held for taxi and commercial drivers in Sunyani, Mr Awuah explained retirement was inevitable and a reality of life, which could not be escaped whether in...

June 1, 2021
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May 2021
31May

China introduces three-child policy to alleviate problem of ageing population

China's government has announced it is scrapping a policy limiting couples to two children and will now allow them to have three. The change was approved during a Politburo meeting chaired by President Xi Jinping, according to official news agency Xinhua. The government said the problem of an ageing populace was deepening and the change would help to improve the structure of China's population and maintain its advantage in human resources. The policy change will come with "supportive measures, which will be...

May 31, 2021
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31May

German court rejects complaints against double taxation of pensions

Germany's federal fiscal court on Monday rejected as unfounded a retired couple's objection to their retirement benefits being double taxed. The court case resulted from a 2005 change in the law that made pensions liable to tax. Until then, pensions had been essentially tax-exempt as the contributions were made from taxed salaries. Under the 2005 law, pension contribution payments gradually became essentially tax free while the taxable share of pension income was increased in a process set to conclude by 2040. The...

May 31, 2021
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31May

Net-zero future confronts oil-rich nations

Ali Allawi, Iraq’s Finance Minister, found himself in a quandary last year as the spread of coronavirus cut demand for oil and prices tumbled. Allawi’s treasury, which receives more than 90 per cent of its revenues from crude sales and spends 45 per cent of its total budget on salaries and pensions, suddenly didn’t have enough money to pay millions of public employees and retirees. OPEC’s second-largest producer borrowed billions of dollars, mostly from local banks, to bridge the shortfall. But...

May 31, 2021
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31May

China. ‘Third pillar’ of pension cover can help aging society

Two important documents－this year's Government Work Report and the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) for National Economic and Social Development and the Long-Range Objectives Through the Year 2035－put forward that the so-called third pillar of endowment insurance will develop in a well-regulated way. China entered the club of aging societies in 2000. While the total population is growing at a low speed, the elderly group has been growing at a high speed in recent years. According to the seventh national population census,...

May 31, 2021
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28May

UK pension asset owners join Net-Zero Asset Owner Alliance

Three UK pension asset owners have signed up to the UN-convened Net-Zero Asset Owner Alliance. As reported by our sister publication, European Pensions, Phoenix Group, Legal & General (L&G) and Rothesay all joined alongside Germany’s largest pension fund under public law, Bayerische Versorgungskammer (BVK), and Asia- and Africa-focused insurance group, Prudential plc. The five new signatories have added a combined USD 900bn AUM to the alliance, meaning it now consists of 42 assets owners managing a combined USD 6.6trn of assets. By...

May 28, 2021
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28May

US. Market Rebound Spurs Record 33.55% Return for NY State Pension Fund

The New York State Common Retirement Fund (NYSCRF) reported a 33.55% investment return for the fiscal year ending March 31, the largest one-year investment return in the fund’s history. It easily beat its long-term expected rate of return of 6.8%. Read also US. New York City Pensions to Fund $250 Million Apartment Venture The performance, which reflected the financial markets’ rebound from last year’s market crash after the COVID-19 pandemic first hit, raised the fund’s asset value to an estimated $254.8...

May 28, 2021
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28May

Africa’s Biggest Fund Manager Loses Head of Impact Investing

Roy Rajdhar, the executive head of impact investing at Africa’s biggest fund manager, has quit. Rajdhar’s departure comes after South Africa’s Public Investment Corp. told staff on May 6 that his 14-month suspension had been lifted. Rajdhar on Thursday confirmed his departure, but declined to comment further. The executive’s exit comes after employees of the Isibaya Fund, which includes the department Rajdhar ran, accused some of the money manager’s senior leaders of causing an “existential crisis” by allowing a mandate with...

May 28, 2021
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