April 2025

Jamaica. Gov’t worker arrested for fraud after pension funds go missing

Detectives assigned to the Constabulary Financial Unit (CFU) of the Counter Terrorism and Organised Crime Investigations Branch (C-TOC) arrested an administrative assistant at a government establishment on Thursday, April 10, following an investigation into alleged fraudulent pension payments. The CFU team visited the establishment at about 10:00 am and apprehended a 49-year-old woman from a Garvey Meade address in St Catherine. The investigation revealed that between March 2017 and May 2018, another government body reportedly made seventeen (17) payments totalling just...

Zimbabwe. Short-term insurers target informal sector

The Insurance Council of Zimbabwe (ICZ), an association of short-term insurers, says the industry is exploring new business lines through inclusive insurance and targeting the informal sector. Motor and fire insurance continue to dominate short-term insurance industry revenue in both local currency and US dollar terms. According to the Insurance and Pensions Commission (Ipec) third-quarter 2024 report, direct short-term insurers reported consolidated insurance revenue amounting to ZiG 2,53 billion and US$153,97 million in terms of foreign currency business. During the reporting period,...

Top U.S. pension funds lost US$169 billion after tariff shock

The top 25 state and local U.S. pension investment funds suffered an estimated paper loss of US$169 billion in public equities after U.S. President Trump’s tariff announcement. The losses came in the four trading days between April 3 and April 8, following U.S. Trump’s announcement on global tariffs, according to a report by Equable Institute, a New York-based the bipartisan nonprofit organization that focuses on pensions. For the whole year so far, the top funds have lost an estimated US$249...

Peru to promote investments in reforestation and carbon credits

The Government will promote private investment in reforestation and forest maintenance, thereby harnessing Peru's potential in the global carbon credit market. Similarly, it will develop a regulatory framework to facilitate and foster sustainable investment, mainly in the Amazonia. To this end, Minister Jose Salardi (Economy and Finance) met with his peers Angel Manero (Agrarian Development and Irrigation) and Juan Carlos Castro (Environment) to assess the country's potential in the issuance of carbon credits. Also present at the meeting were representatives from Imperative company, who highlighted Peru's ability to capitalize on...

UK. Understanding and Evaluating Retirement Income Solutions

With nearly 4.2 million Americans reaching age 65 this year—the most ever—retirement plan advisers and sponsors are no longer able to ignore or put off the need to provide retiree and near-retiree participants with options to begin drawing down the income they have spent decades saving. Last year, about 20% of 500 C-suite leaders surveyed by TIAA said that offering guaranteed income for life was the top way that employers could improve workers’ retirement. But plan sponsors have an additional...

US. Social Security rule-reversals, office closures, cost cuts: here’s what’s happening now.

The Social Security Administration is about to get a new commissioner, but that’s only the latest of a series of changes at the agency since the inauguration of President Donald Trump. Frank Bisignano, the chief executive officer of fintech company Fiserv FI -3.34%, is on the path to confirmation as the next Social Security Administration commissioner. The Senate Finance Committee advanced the nomination after his hearing at the end of March, and he is now awaiting scheduling of the final...

UK government urged to amend pension rules to support sustainable growth

Lack of clarity over fiduciary duty and a heavy sustainability reporting burden are key issues for the pensions industry, says UKSIF At a glance The UK government is planning an overhaul of the investment rules regulating the pensions sector in attempt to spur growth and stimulate investment in UK assets Simplifying sustainability rules should be part of the reform agenda, with a greater focus on transition planning rather than lengthy disclosures, says UKSIF The fiduciary duty of pension trustees with regards to climate...

Pension funds record overallocation to private equity in Q1 2025

Global pension funds in aggregate were above their median target allocation to private equity in the first quarter of 2025, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence data. The median target allocation across 298 pension funds was $306.8 million, and the median actual allocation was $330.3 million, resulting in a $23.5 million overallocation. Allocation takes on greater significance if public markets enter a sustained decline, resulting in an overallocation to private markets due to the denominator effect. The imbalance can restrict a...

Pensions at a Crossroads: Building Inclusive Retirement Systems for an Aging World

The World Bank’s Social Protection and Jobs Global Practice, in collaboration with the ASPIRE team and informed by research from the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA), delivers a timely and comprehensive report. This document scrutinizes the global state of pension and social insurance systems, offering insight into their adequacy, sustainability, and coverage in a world experiencing rapid population aging. As the share of elderly citizens rises sharply across...

Trade war threatens pensions, risks recession

A local financial adviser pegs the risk of global recession at between 30 and 40 per cent, after Donald Trump’s announcement of sweeping global tariffs sent the US stock market in a tail spin. The prediction from Bryan Dooley, the chief investment officer for LOM Asset Management Ltd, may be conservative. Goldman Sachs raised the odds of a US recession to 45 per cent, their second hike in a week. Others are at 50 per cent. JP Morgan chief economist Bruce Kasman,...