Slider Archives - Page 199 of 454 - Pension Policy International

25MarMarch 25, 2020

UK. Parliament pension fund cuts fossil fuel investments

Parliament’s pension fund has made record investments in renewable energy and cut its exposure to fossil fuel companies to bring MPs’ pensions in line with the government’s climate action targets. A report from the £700m pension fund showed that almost a third is now being invested in low carbon and environmentally sustainable funds following calls from hundreds of MPs to align the fund with the government’s legally binding climate commitments. Read also Swedish Pension AP1 Divests From Fossil Fuels ...

March 25, 2020

News, Slider2020, ESG, Europe, Investment, UK

25MarMarch 25, 2020

Kenya. Covid-19 test to our social protection system

As the world grapples with the Covid-19 global pandemic, the government has set in motion a raft of measures designed to not only arrest the spread of the coronavirus disease in Kenya but also ameliorate its negative financial and economic impact on the population. Read also Kenya’s Pezesha wins CATAPULT: Inclusion Africa 2020 bootcamp Many governments in the developed world are at different stages of deploying a variety of financial and social assistance mechanisms to help its citizens and business...

March 25, 2020

News, SliderAfrica, Coronavirus, COVID-19, Kenya

25MarMarch 25, 2020

German federation proposes standard product for private pensions

The Federation of German Consumer Organisations – vzbv – and the state of Hesse have proposed a standard product, or Extra Rente, for private pensions to reform the system. The proposal aims to fix some of the problems brought by the privately funded pension system – Riester-Rente – since its introduction almost 20 years ago, precisely at the time when the government coalition weighs up possible changes. Dorothea Mohn, head of the financial market team at Vzbv, told IPE...

March 25, 2020

News, Slider2020, Europe, Germany, Private Pensions

25MarMarch 25, 2020

Swedish Pension AP1 Divests From Fossil Fuels

Swedish pension fund AP1 said it will no longer invest in fossil fuel companies. The SEK365.8 billion ($35.8 billion) fund said the transition to a low-carbon economy represents a significant amount of uncertainty for companies involved in coal, oil, and natural gas activities and that “continued investments related to these activities can increase the financial risk exposure of the fund.” The fund said the move is a result of its work to identify and analyze climate-related financial risks in...

March 25, 2020

News, Slider2020, Europe, Sweden

24MarMarch 24, 2020

US. Pension Plan Funding Relief Needed ASAP

Last week, in a throwaway line in an article on multiemployer pensions, I considered it something of a given that, following a script similar to the 2008 crisis, Congress would provide “funding relief” to single-employer pension plan sponsors, allowing them to defer contributions to their pension plans which would otherwise be substantially elevated, and that it was multiemployer plans, with their pre-existing funding challenges, that faced greater difficulties. Unfortunately, that isn’t quite right. Single-employer plans are facing their own...

March 24, 2020

News, Slider2020, System sustainability

24MarMarch 24, 2020

UK. Parliamentary pension fund steps up renewables investment, but MPs insist full divestment urgently needed

MPs and peers have today again called on Parliament's pension fund to divest from fossil fuel assets, after its latest annual report revealed that despite an uptick in green investments the fund is still heavily reliant on fossil fuel majors. The cross-party Divest Parliament initiative today responded to the recently released annual report from the Parliamentary Contributory Pension Fund (PCPF), which revealed that the fund has significant increased its interest in low carbon assets while reducing its exposure to...

March 24, 2020

News, Slider2020, ESG, Investment

24MarMarch 24, 2020

Australia’s pensions industry in urgent talks on coronavirus crisis changes

Australia's A$3 trillion ($1.72 trillion) pension industry was not consulted on the federal government's decision to allow the unemployed and sole traders early access to retirement savings and is now in urgent talks about the move, sources said. Read also New ZealandTime to rethink everything especially super policy Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Treasurer Josh Frydenberg on Sunday revealed a A$66 billion fiscal stimulus package including measures allowing workers to take up to A$20,000 out of their superannuation savings over...

March 24, 2020

News, Slider2020, Funding

24MarMarch 24, 2020

Fintech firms say new tech could speed recovery from COVID-19

Financial technology companies are working to improve behind-the-scenes market functions, such as exchanging securities and making lending decisions, saying the use of new technologies could help markets recover faster than they did in past financial crises. New York-based Paxos Settlement Service last month became the first firm to use blockchain technology to settle U.S. stock trades, the process by which securities are exchanged for cash after two parties agree to a trade. The settlement process is more complicated than...

March 24, 2020

News, Slider2020, Coronavirus, COVID-19, Fintech

23MarMarch 23, 2020

COVID-19 puts burden on gig economy workers. But can they deliver without social protection?

The coronavirus outbreak has caused life across the world to stutter to a halt and the barricades are now quickly going up. Borders are being shut down and people are increasingly seeking to isolate themselves as restricting social contact has been touted by the scientific community as the one measure that may work to decelerate the pace of the virus’ spread. However, in order for most of society to survive the isolation comfortably, we shall find ourselves increasingly dependent...

March 23, 2020

News, Slider2020, Coronavirus, COVID-19, Informal Sector, Labor Market, Social Protection

23MarMarch 23, 2020

Ageing populations expected to impact fiscal policies, says Moody’s

Population ageing is expected to raise the debt and financing requirements of many advanced economies in the coming decades, according to a report by Moody’s Investors Service released on March 4. In addition, a shrinking labour force and lower private domestic savings due to a growing ageing population will constrain funding for governments in those economies. The report notes that the twin pressures of shrinking labour force and lower private domestic savings will leave politically challenging fiscal consolidation,...

March 23, 2020

News, Slider2020, Aging, Public Policy

March 2020