February 2019

28Feb

Portugal. State paid out millions to deceased pensioners

News reports this morning have revealed social security services have paid out millions of euros to deceased pensioners. According to an internal audit conducted by the Accounts Tribunal, 3.7 million euros were paid out in 2016 to 2017, and in some cases, payments were made for ten years after a recipient’s death. Recovering the cash from family members who pocketed the payments has not proven easy, with only around 600,000 euros recouped by the state to date. Read more...

February 28, 2019
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28Feb

London Stock Exchange Leads $20 Million Fundraise for Blockchain Startup Nivaura

Capital markets blockchain startup Nivaura has raised a total of $20 million with the closing of its second seed extension round led by the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG). Announced today, other investors in the latest round include Santander InnoVentures, the Spanish bank’s VC arm; law firms Linklaters and Orrick; Transamerica Ventures, part of pensions and asset management giant Aegon; MiddleGame Ventures; Digital Currency Group; and Spencer Lake, formerly head of global markets at HSBC. Nivaura closed the original...

February 28, 2019
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28Feb

Germany struggles to stop Nazi war payment suspicions

A Belgian bid to stop Berlin from paying pensions to alleged Nazi collaborators has exposed a cloud of confusion and suspicion - including in Germany - over payments still made to 2,000 people worldwide. The controversial law in question is known innocuously as the Federal German War Victims' Assistance Act, or the "Bundesversorgungsgesetz", but tabloid-style Bild daily calls it "Hitler's pensions". The debate surrounding the law exploded again on February 20th when the Belgian parliament voted on a resolution...

February 28, 2019
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27Feb

Brazil. Pension Reform Will Make Young People Take Jobs With Less Benefits

Bill encourages hiring retirees and extends the retirement age, making older people stay in the workforce Bolsonaro's proposed Social Security reform bill will keep middle-aged professionals who could otherwise retire in the workforce. It is also bringing a new idea: incentives for companies to hire retirees. However, specialists say that the proposal will have an unexpected side effect: it will force young people - especially the ones without skills - to take jobs without law-mandated benefits. ...

February 27, 2019
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27Feb

Ireland. Pension hike for 1,000 people following major government review

ALMOST 1,000 people have got a pension hike following a major government review of their retirement benefits. The pensioners’ payments were reassessed to see if an increase was justified following cuts imposed seven years ago. A full state contributory pension is worth €243.30 a week but many get less than this depending on the contributions they made during their careers. Under the review, officials from the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection applied a new assessment method. It...

February 27, 2019
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27Feb

US Man’s “Holiday Inn” Retirement Plan Is Viral

Competition is at least partly to blame, with some 10,000 baby boomers retiring each day, according to the business news channel. American seniors seeking to retire on the cheap have a new source of inspiration: a Texas man who plans to spend his golden years in Holiday Inn hotels to avoid costly nursing home fees. "For a combined long term stay discount and senior discount, it's $59.23 per night," Houston-area resident Terry Robison said on Facebook three weeks ago...

February 27, 2019
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26Feb

Pooling Pensions Could Give Better Outcomes For Savers

Financial experts are advocating more pension tinkering after an international study of workplace schemes concluded retirement savers could benefit from pooling resources. The study looked at defined contribution pensions offered by employers and found that pooling could lead to benefit from economies of scale. This was most significant when schemes looked at: Negotiating fees for managing illiquid assets, where larger funds could gain cheaper rates Developing in-house expertise when pooled pensions made the move more cost-effective The report ‘The...

February 26, 2019
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26Feb

UK. Urgent need for real estate industry to adapt to ageing population, report shows

The report, which was written by Professor Les Mayhew of the Cass Business School, at City University, examined the impact that increasing life expectancy will have on UK society and found that too many older people are living in unsuitable housing. This perpetuates the housing crisis and stores up problems for the future. The UK population is expected to increase by 10 million over the next 25 years, with much of that due to people living longer. This has...

February 26, 2019
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26Feb

US. MBTA pension fund faces hard times after 2018 losses

After the MBTA pension fund posted losses in 2018, officials warned Monday that the burden of covering retirement for thousands of T employees remains "a really crucial issue." The fund has been the subject of scrutiny for years as the MBTA grapples with budget concerns. New figures, discussed at the authority's board meeting, did not alleviate the pressure: the fund paid out $100 million more to retirees last year than it collected in contributions from current employees, and it...

February 26, 2019
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26Feb

Ireland. Failure to save for pensions ‘particularly concerning’ for women

More than 60% of women do not have a private pension, a new study has found. According to a survey carried out by Behaviour and Attitudes for Aviva men are more proactive and confident about their retirement income than women. Almost half of the men polled said they had a pension, compared with 37% of women. One in four women surveyed said a pension was something they were unlikely to ever do. Aviva said the results show a pension...

February 26, 2019
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