September 2020

04Sep

UK. The pensions regulator: imposing joint and several liability for pensions liabilities

Investigations by the Pensions Regulator have dealt immense damage to companies' reputations in the past. What are its moral hazard powers, and how can organisations mitigate the risk of an intervention? Anne-Marie Winton, Partner at Arc Pensions Law LLP, examines the role of the Pensions Regulator in imposing joint and several liability on group companies. Defined benefits (or final salary) pension schemes are often a group’s largest unsecured UK creditor by far, possibly representing hundreds of millions of pounds of...

September 4, 2020
News, Slider, ,
Read more...
04Sep

Disruptive fintech is our best bet to economic recovery post COVID-19

History has taught us that times of crisis drive demand for technological advancement. Those that leverage innovative technology, to tackle challenges and turn them into opportunities, are often the most successful in helping society to recover. Earlier this year, when the novel coronavirus sparked a global pandemic, physical distancing was enforced around the world to limit the spread of infection. This led to a surge in remote working and a spike in unemployment, sparking technological innovation within a number...

September 4, 2020
News, Slider, ,
Read more...
03Sep

Pensions Need a ‘Safety Valve,’ Says JPMorgan

Pensions entered the Covid-19 pandemic significantly exposed to corporate credit risk, relying on a traditional investment strategy that may be heading for failure, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s asset management group. They’ve been hedging the volatility of their pension liabilities by taking on “a very concentrated exposure to corporate credit,” Jared Gross, the head of institutional portfolio strategy at J.P. Morgan Asset Management, said in a phone interview. Largely holding corporate bonds at risk of being downgraded...

September 3, 2020
News, Slider, , ,
Read more...
03Sep

Expert Warns UK Pensions Could Face Massive Dashboard Compliance Costs, Work

Contrary to government claims, UK pension plans might have to pay millions of pounds to prepare data for the pensions dashboard, according to Steve Webb, a former UK pensions minister who is now a partner at investment consultant Lane Clark & Peacock. In an attempt to simplify the complexities of pensions savings for citizens, the UK government and the country’s pensions industry are launching a pensions dashboard. The dashboard is a digital interface that will allow people to view...

September 3, 2020
News, Slider, ,
Read more...
03Sep

US. COVID-19 economy pushing workers into early, involuntary retirement

The COVID-19 pandemic may have pushed millions of older workers out of the workforce prematurely. A report published earlier this month from the Schwartz Center for Economic Policy Analysis (SCEPA) at The New School showed that 2.8 million older workers have left their jobs since March — and ongoing economic turmoil coupled with poor health could make it difficult to resume their career elsewhere. Some may have already given up. Per the report, 38% of unemployed older employees stopped...

September 3, 2020
News, Slider, , ,
Read more...
03Sep

Europe needs a fully fledged capital markets union – now more than ever

The capital markets union (CMU) is one of the cornerstones of the euro area's financial architecture. But progress in developing it has been slow. Since the agreement on establishing CMU in 2015, many subprojects have been launched, and some completed, but European capital markets are still far from being fully integrated. Despite the fact that the coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis has made CMU more important than ever, progress has unfortunately slowed, notwithstanding the substantial headway made on the fiscal side...

September 3, 2020
News, Slider, , ,
Read more...
02Sep

How the coronavirus pandemic is deepening Asia’s pension crisis

As the Covid-19 pandemic continues to overwhelm economies in Asia, putting an unprecedented number of jobs on the line, another crisis is brewing in the backdrop – one that’s likely to hit millions of people years down the road. Along with the strain on their health and financial well-being, the pandemic threatens to derail Asians’ retirement security and Asia’s multitrillion-dollar pension systems, which already faced major challenges pre-Covid-19. As early as 2017, the World Economic Forum warned that a...

September 2, 2020
News, Slider, , , ,
Read more...
02Sep

European Pensions Lead Adoption of ESG Investments

While the United States is beginning to take notice of investments backed by environmental, social and governance principles, the majority of European pensions have already adopted the ESG theme. According to Mercer’s most recent European Asset Allocation Survey, the majority of European pension funds now incorporate environmental, social, and governance risks into their investments, compared to just two years ago when less than half even considered ESG as an option, Chief Investment Officer reports. The survey results showed that...

September 2, 2020
News, Slider, ,
Read more...
02Sep

Pennsylvania Teachers’ Pension Sheds $2 Billion in Risky Investments

The board of trustees of the $55.8 billion Pennsylvania Public School Employees’ Retirement System (PSERS) has unanimously voted to dump approximately $2 billion from “expensive and underperforming” investments. At its most recent meeting, the board agreed to the move as part of a $5 billion reallocation out of hedge funds and other higher risk investments into stocks, bonds, commodities, and infrastructure investments. The move was lauded by Pennsylvania State Treasurer Joe Torsella. “It’s time that more pension funds wake...

September 2, 2020
News, Slider, ,
Read more...
02Sep

Bitcoin As a Retirement Plan Investment?

The cryptocurrency is legally permissible as a 401(k) investment under ERISA, but some plan sponsors may have questions about whether it is prudent. Bitwage launched what it touted as the “world’s first Bitcoin 401(k) plan” in May. Bitwage provides cryptocurrency payroll and invoicing services. It says the 401(k) offering is a four-way strategic collaboration between Bitwage, Leading Retirement Solutions, Kingdom Trust and Gemini. Leading Retirement Solutions provides the administration and recordingkeeping for the 401(k) plan. Kingdom Trust is the custodian,...

September 2, 2020
News, Slider, , ,
Read more...