July 2018

26Jul

UK. Pensions dashboard: Why it would be crazy to ditch one of the most common sense ideas to come out of government

"What have you lost?” your colleague asks as you desperately retrace your steps. “My pension!” you cry. Okay, well that never happened. But imagine for a second that we were to treat our misplaced pensions in the same way we treat lost phones. In the UK, billions of pounds of pension money is currently “lost” – not in a stock market crash or stolen through fraud, but instead misplaced and unclaimed. The reasons for this are multifaceted, and have plenty to do...

July 26, 2018
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26Jul

South Africa orders probe into $150 billion state pension fund – treasury

South Africa's finance minister on Wednesday ordered an independent inquiry into state pension manager the Public Investment Corporation (PIC), following corruption allegations involving high-ranking executives, the National Treasury said. PIC, which is Africa's biggest investment fund, said this month its legal head had quit after evidence of wrongdoing emerged during a disciplinary hearing into the collapse of VBS Bank. The VBS administrator said an in affidavit that an unnamed PIC executive had taken a 5 million rand (£288,030) bribe to facilitate...

July 26, 2018
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25Jul

Tenders on the menu for UK pension schemes

The UK competition regulator is proposing regulatory changes designed to ensure pension schemes pressure the market into providing the best value for members. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is concerned competition problems exist within the UK's investment consultancy and fiduciary management markets. The regulator pointed out that about half of the UK's pension schemes use the same provider for both fiduciary management and investment consultancy. According to the regulator, trustees are vulnerable to pressure from their investment consultant which may...

July 25, 2018
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25Jul

Chile’s Pension Risk Rating Commission Approves Sale of Additional First Trust ETF

First Trust Advisors L.P. (“First Trust”), a global ETF provider and asset manager, announced that Chilean pension funds investment risk rating commission, La Comisión Clasificadora de Riesgo (CCR), has approved an additional First Trust exchange-traded fund (ETF) for sale to Chilean pension funds, known as la Asociación de Administradoras de Fondos de Pensiones (AFPs). According to Chile’s pension plan investment guidelines, before an ETF can be purchased in a pension fund, it must be approved by the CCR. “More diverse...

July 25, 2018
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25Jul

US. How public sector employers are reducing their pension liabilities

Public sector employers are struggling with the same problems that private employers are when it comes to pension plans. Rising costs associated with these plans have forced many municipalities, school districts and colleges and universities to get creative with their benefits to not only save money but still attract and retain good employees. The cost of pensions increased in more than 70% of cities, and one in three cities identified these expenses as the largest expense affecting their budgets, a...

July 25, 2018
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24Jul

US. Future Income Payments – Securities Investigation

CHICAGO, June 28, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The White Law Group announces a securities fraud investigation involving the liability that sales agents may have for selling Future Income Payments LLC (FIP LLC) to investors. Future Income Payments is a pension cash flow originator. The company claims to be “the industry leader and an innovator in buying and selling secondary market pension cash flows, often referred to as Structured Cash Flows.” Unfortunately for investors, consumer lending regulators from New York, Massachusetts, Iowa,...

July 24, 2018
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24Jul

Malaysia. RAM Ratings: Malaysia has potential as Sustainable Responsible Investment hub

RAM Ratings sees Malaysia evolving into a sustainable responsible investment (SRI) hub, supported by its prominent global presence in Islamic finance. RAM Ratings sees Malaysia evolving into a sustainable responsible investment (SRI) hub, supported by its prominent global presence in Islamic finance. The proactive efforts and strong commitment of Bank Negara Malaysia, Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) and Bursa Malaysia have paved the way for both responsible and green finance to thrive in Malaysia. According to publicly available data from the...

July 24, 2018
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24Jul

China. Pension fund investment grows steadily

BEIJING, July 23 (Xinhua) -- Local governments in China have entrusted more pension funds for investment as the country faces the challenge of an aging population, a human resource official said Monday. By the end of June, 14 provincial-level regions including Beijing and Shanghai had signed contracts to entrust a total of ¥585 billion (about US$87 billion) in pension funds to the National Council for Social Security Fund (NCSSF), according to Lu Aihong, spokesperson with the Ministry of Human Resources...

July 24, 2018
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24Jul

CMA conducted a market investigation into the supply and acquisition of investment consultancy services and fiduciary management services

Asset Management Market Study: Final decision to make a Market Investigation Reference (MIR) on investment consultancy services As part of their Asset Management Market Study the FCA have made a final decision to make a market investigation reference on investment consultancy and fiduciary management services and to reject the proposed Undertakings in Lieu (UIL). Time line of the decision November 2016: the FCA published their provisional decision to make a market investigation reference (MIR) of the investment consultancy market to the CMA. February...

July 24, 2018
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23Jul

US. Here’s What the Average Retiree Spends on Healthcare Each Year

It's natural to assume that our living costs will mostly go down in retirement, but if there's one expense that's likely to rise during your golden years, it's healthcare. From deductibles to copays to Medicare premiums, healthcare can easily grow to become your single greatest monthly expense -- but planning for it can help alleviate some of the stress it causes so many seniors. So how much money should you expect to allocate to medical costs? The average retiree spends...

July 23, 2018
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