May 2020
27May

US. The Federal Employee Retirement Plan Should Add, Not Delete Chinese Stocks

By Ric Edelman Never mix investing with politics, as I wrote in my bestselling book, The Truth About Retirement Plans and IRAs. Sadly, for millions of American public servants, the board that controls their $600 billion retirement savings plan just did. The Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board just halted its plans to include Chinese stocks in the Thrift Savings Plan, the 401(k) equivalent for federal employees and members of the military. First, some background. The TSP has five core...

May 27, 2020
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27May

South Africa. Odds stacked against investment industry as Covid-19 hits pension contributions

The investment industry could face one of its toughest years to date in 2020 as people are losing their jobs and cashing out their pensions to survive, while companies are giving those who remain employed options to save less for retirement. One of SA's biggest asset managers, Coronation Fund Managers, said while it is still early to assess the impact of coronavirus-related job losses on the industry, it is safe to expect that less money will be coming in....

May 27, 2020
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27May

Spain: Pension Payouts And Registrations Fall After Coronavirus Crisis Hits Elderly

The coronavirus crisis has triggered an historical drop in the number of state pensions paid out in Spain in May, in part because of two months of high mortality caused by coronavirus. Read also The Game of Pension Risk Transfers Continues Some 9,754,137 contributory pensions were paid out in May, 38,508 fewer benefits than were paid out in April.The fall has triggered an unprecedented drop in Spain’s monthly pension bill. In May, it fell by 0.3% to 9.8 billion...

May 27, 2020
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27May

The Future Of Fintech: The New Normal After The Covid-19 Crisis

OBSERVATIONS FROM THE FINTECH SNARK TANK The “new normal” in banking and fintech is best understood by starting with a look back at what the “old normal” was. The Old Normal: Fintech Fetishism The Oxford dictionary defines fetishism as “worship of an inanimate object for its supposed magical powers.” That’s a good term for how many people have thought—and still think—of fintech. There’s a misguided notion held by many that fintech startups are somehow more ethical than legacy banks,...

May 27, 2020
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26May

Virus Turmoil Wipes Out Year’s Growth for Australia Pensions

Global market turmoil caused by the coronavirus has wiped out a year’s growth for Australia’s pensions industry, the world’s fourth-biggest pot of retirement savings. Read also Australian regulator urges poorly performing pension funds to find buyers, exit industry Assets under management fell 7.7% to A$2.73 trillion ($1.8 trillion) in the three months to March 31, back to almost the same level it was a year ago, Australian Prudential Regulation Authority data published Tuesday showed. That’s a marked turnaround for an...

May 26, 2020
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26May

Romania’s PM says pensions will rise “depending on economy”

Romanian prime minister Ludovic Orban confirmed that the public pensions would increase from September 1, although the economy is not going well. By how much will depend on "the state of the economy" and will be decided considering the long-term sustainability of the public pension system, he added. "The pensions will increase. By how much will they increase, this depends on the state of the economy and the [state's] actual capacity to pay pensions not only this year but...

May 26, 2020
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26May

The Arrival Of The ‘Unavoidable Pension Crisis’

By Lance Roberts I wrote an article in 2017 discussing the “Unavoidable Pension Crisis.” At that time, most did not understand the risk. Since then, the situation has continued to worsen. COVID-19 pandemic has likely triggered a rolling pension collapse over the next couple of years. This idea was discussed in more depth with members of my private investing community,Real Investment Advice PRO. Read also Allianz unveils the first edition of its Global Pension Report In 2017, I wrote an...

May 26, 2020
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26May

US. The No.1 reason people make early withdrawals from retirement funds may surprise you

By John Anderer Retirement is the prize at the end of the work marathon. Any financial advisor or accountant will tell you it’s a good idea to start saving for retirement as early as possible, and the average working adult spends decades adding money, little by little, to his or her retirement fund. When the time comes, that money will be spent on leisure, fun, and everything else we can’t do while working full time. Now, you’re not supposed to touch...

May 26, 2020
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25May

U.K.’s Largest Pension Fund Urges Total to Clamp Down on CO2

The U.K.’s biggest pension fund said it will back a climate resolution asking for France’s Total SA to adopt a tougher stance on climate change at its annual shareholder meeting next week. The resolution was brought by 11 European asset managers last month, in another example of investors pressuring Big Oil to tackle environmental challenges. Since then, Total has set out bold commitments to eliminate most of its emissions by 2050, joining others such as Royal Dutch Shell Plc...

May 25, 2020
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25May

Australia. Universal pension for all: Retirees call for tax and income reform

Every retiree would get at least a part pension under a plan being considered by seniors' groups amid concerns the coronavirus pandemic's effect on key income streams is leaving many older Australians cash poor and increasing the number living in poverty. Seniors organisations are pressing the Morrison government to look at a massive overhaul to the pension system that would also take into account possible changes to tax concessions, such as franking credits, as a way to pay for...

May 25, 2020
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