January 2021

22Jan

Canadian pension funds hunt for pandemic real estate bargains

Canadian pension funds are seeking to boost their real estate investments, betting the slumping property market will recover as the COVID-19 pandemic recedes and office workers and city dwellers return to downtown properties. Canadian pension funds held $278.7 billion in property assets in 2019, up 4% from 2018, according to the Pension Investment Association of Canada, making them the country’s largest real estate owners. In a world of slower economic growth, very low interest rates, volatility in equity markets,...

January 22, 2021
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22Jan

Australia. Fresh calls for universal pension after talk of new ‘death tax’

After some talk about drawing money from deceased super estates, one seniors' advocate is recommending a universal pension. Ian Henschke, chief advocate for National Seniors Australia, has renewed calls for a universal pension scheme that isn't means tested. "Review after review complains about older people failing to spend down their capital; they don’t blame the system, they blame the retiree. And then they wonder why no one’s listening," he told Savings.com.au. "By setting income and asset limits which restrict...

January 22, 2021
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22Jan

US. Special Report: Why Pennsylvania SERS is Moving Toward a Liability-Driven Benchmark

Seth Kelly, the investment chief at the Pennsylvania State Employees’ Retirement System (SERS), joined the pension fund just half a year ago, but he’s already overseeing some big changes. Board members at the $31.5 billion pension fund last month announced that they are increasing their fixed income allocation in order to move the pension fund toward a liability-driven benchmark. The trustees hope that the changes to the investment policy statement (IPS), including a new 7.8% target for long...

January 22, 2021
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21Jan

UK. Pension bill passes last hurdle

The Pension Schemes Bill is to receive Royal Assent and become law imminently after being approved by the House of Lords in the final stage of its parliamentary journey. The bill managed to avoid a round of parliamentary ping pong after peers accepted the House of Commons amendments in a hearing yesterday (January 19). Also Read: Thousands of UK savers advised to give up final-salary pensions It was reintroduced to the House of Lords at the beginning of last year...

January 21, 2021
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21Jan

US. Pandemic Puts More Households at Risk in Retirement

The National Retirement Risk Index (NRRI), calculated every three years, measures the share of American households that are at risk of not being able to maintain their pre-retirement standard of living in retirement. “Since the Great Recession, the NRRI has shown that even if households work to age 65 and annuitize all their financial assets, including the receipts from reverse mortgages on their homes, roughly half of households are at risk,” according to the Center for Retirement Research at...

January 21, 2021
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21Jan

PensionBee Introduces Pension for the Self-Employed

Online pension provider PensionBee has unveiled a new product catering for the self-employed, as research reveals only 24 per cent currently have a pension. Recent analysis from the Institute for Fiscal Studies shows that the number of self-employed workers has grown rapidly over the past two decades, yet the proportion saving into a private pension has fallen dramatically. Numbers stood at 48 per cent in 1998 but have fallen to just 16 per cent in 2018. Nearly 80 per...

January 21, 2021
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21Jan

Nordic pension giant picks Nordea to run $240m EM strategy

Finnish pension insurance giant Varma has selected Nordea to run ESG-focused $240m emerging markets equity mandate. Juliana Hansveden, portfolio manager of Nordea’s Emerging Stars Equity strategy, said better run companies are more likely to succeed over the long term, which means it is crucial to properly understand and analyse ESG risks. ‘Emerging markets continue to offer a lot of opportunities, and we are looking forward to delivering long-term sustainable performance to Varma and its stakeholders,’ she added. Varma is...

January 21, 2021
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20Jan

OECD launches MENA Pension Oultook report for the fisrt time

In the first pensions forum for OECD in the Arab World, the global economic think-tank says: ➢ The world needs to improve sustainability and increase flexibility in pension arrangements ➢ Coronavirus is causing an unprecedented shock to labor markets as well as to pension systems ➢ Even before COVID-19, pension funds were already facing significant challenges of an aging population and declining investment returns ➢ Pension systems could be more resilient to future challenges if pension funds include two accounts, one for retirement...

January 20, 2021
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20Jan

Pension funds plot move on China’s $16 trillion bond market

China's $16 trillion bond market is the proverbial elephant in the investment room. But it's becoming too big to ignore, even for the most risk-averse Western investors. A large, A+ rated sovereign market that pays 3% yields, with minimal volatility? It's looking increasingly alluring for European pension funds swimming in sub-zero bond yields as aging populations stretch their finances. For some, the benefits are beginning to outweigh the political risks, and they are upping allocations to China, or considering...

January 20, 2021
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20Jan

How to close the digital gap for the elderly

China's ageing population makes it important the country digitally enables the elderly. Globally, tech companies are trying to train the elderly up, giving in-store support with digital payments. Advanced technologies are being specifically adapted to the elderly, with a view to improving their quality of life. Many young people have embraced the convenience of digital technologies such as online shopping, car hailing, digital payments, and telemedicine. But many elderly without a grasp of the latest knowledge are at risk...

January 20, 2021
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