November 2018

01Nov

China. Aging population to boost individual pension market

The individual pension market in China will see great development potential in the future due to increasing pressure from an aging population and growing market demand, according to industrial experts. "With the increase in national income and people's growing awareness to save the pension reserve, China's personal pension market, which is the third pillar of the country's pension system, will see tremendous opportunities," according to Dong Keyong, secretary-general of the China Ageing Finance Forum, or CAFF50. The volume of the individual...

November 1, 2018
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01Nov

UK. Public sector pension had double fracking investments

Local authority pension funds continue to invest in dirty oil and gas. The largest public sector pension fund in the UK has more than double the investment in the fracking industry than previously known with more than £1billion at risk, The Ecologist can reveal. Tameside/Greater Manchester (GMPF) had by 31 March 2018 put in an extra £609m worth of holdings in companies that back fracking - which include financial, chemical, security and waste concerns. This is over and above the £700m...

November 1, 2018
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01Nov

Hongkongers’ MPF funds should not be used to buy property, says OECD pensions chief

Singaporeans can use their pension pots to buy homes, but Pablo Antolin says Hong Kong’s MPF cannot afford such withdrawals, given the current contribution rates Head of OECD’s private pensions unit is in Hong Kong along with hundreds of pension experts to give suggestions on how to improve city’s public pension provisions Hong Kong should follow Singapore and other markets in allowing people to pay more into their Mandatory Provident Funds (MPF). But it should not allow employees to take...

November 1, 2018
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October 2018

31Oct

World’s largest pension fund cites improved ESG adoption by corporates

Japan’s Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF), the world’s largest pension fund, said the companies in which it invests are increasingly adopting environmental, social, and governance (ESG) considerations in their businesses. In the 12 months to March 2018, GPIF’s portfolio companies showed improved ESG rankings for both domestic and foreign equities. The pension fund measured changes in ESG evaluations of its portfolio by calculating the weighted average according to market capitalization of GPIF’s asset under management. “ESG ratings, the ratings of all...

October 31, 2018
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31Oct

US. IRS To Audit 401(k) Savers Who Contribute Too Much

We’ve written about the danger of overstuffing your Individual Retirement Account. Stiff penalties apply. Now the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administrator is out with a report that suggests that some 401(k) workplace retirement plan savers are pushing the limits, saving more than what’s allowed, costing the U.S. Treasury. TIGTA’s recommendation: bring lax employers and errant taxpayers into compliance. The IRS’ response: It will beef up employer education and conduct targeted audits for taxpayers who appear to have excess 401(k) deferrals, especially...

October 31, 2018
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31Oct

South Africa: Gogos Pay to Queue for Pensions

Social grant beneficiaries pay R10 to R20 to get a space outside the Pietermaritzburg post office Social grant beneficiaries in Pietermaritzburg have become the targets of extortion. They have to pay youngsters, known as "amaphara", for a space in the queue outside the post office in Langalibalele Street. They pay R10 or R20 to be even closer to the front. Honoratha Dlamini says it already costs her R200 to hire a car to get from Imbali Unit 13 to the post...

October 31, 2018
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31Oct

US. The Dangerous Consequence Of Cutting Public Safety Pensions

Management consulting firm McKinsey reports that organizations that appear on “best places to work” lists often make the cut because their business strategy is premised on a long-term relationship with their employees. McKinsey credits companies for both the large and small signals sent to employees that an organization cares about its people. Valued by employers as a workforce management tool to recruit and retain talent, offering defined benefit (DB) pension benefits is one way that employers send a loud signal to employees...

October 31, 2018
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30Oct

It’s Never Too Soon: Retirement Planning for Millennials

Millennials are in a bind, squeezed by changing workplace opportunities and massive student debts. To get on the right path to build their wealth, they should follow these four steps. Much has been written about the shaky financial health of Millennials, most notably that they are lagging behind other generations in personal net worth and falling behind in their retirement savings. This is due less to the popular belief of excessive spending and an alleged aversion for saving money, and...

October 30, 2018
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30Oct

US. Pension Funds Point Finger at Lobbyists of Polluting Companies

A group of pension funds that control $2 trillion are pushing for 55 large European energy, mining and transportation companies to scale back their anti-climate lobbying. Sweden’s AP7, Legal & General Group Plc, the Church of England’s pension fund and Robeco of the Netherlands wrote to the chairman of each company, asking them not to use organizations that try to ease governments’ environmental rules and to be transparent about their own lobbying. The list of recipients includes 10 oil and...

October 30, 2018
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30Oct

UK. TPR bans pension trustees over high-risk investments

The Pensions Regulator (TPR) has banned two trustees of the London Quantum pension scheme for transferring funds into high-risk and suspected scam investments. Stephen Ward and Anthony Salih, directors of Dorrixo Alliance Limited, which acted as trustee for the London Quantum pension scheme were found to have put pension savers’ money into eucalyptus farms, hotel rooms on an African island and car park bays. TPR’s determinations panel has banned both men from acting as pension trustees due to their ‘lack of...

October 30, 2018
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