September 2018

10Sep

Zimbabwe mulls pension reforms

Zimbabwe is proposing pension reforms as it seeks to come up with an efficient pension system, according to a draft document compiled by the Insurance and Pension Commission. This comes amid challenges besetting the industry, including low confidence levels, poor viability of pension funds, low coverage and poor corporate governance. “In view of the above challenges, the Insurance and Pensions Commission has taken an initiative to propose holistic reforms for the country’s pension sector in order to come up with an...

September 10, 2018
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10Sep

Ireland. Report warns of explosion in public debt caused by ageing population

Longer working lives, minimising increases in public spending and reforms to boost productivity will be necessary over the coming years if an explosion in public debt, caused by an ageing population, is to be avoided, a new report from the Department of Finance has found. The report, released by the department on Sunday, projects huge increases in age-related costs unless significant policy changes are made by future governments. Rising life expectancy, greater numbers of older people and a consequent fall in...

September 10, 2018
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07Sep

These countries top the US when it comes to retirement

If you're looking for a country that offers a quality retirement, you may want to look outside the U.S. Natixis Investment Managers has released its annual ranking of countries with the best retirement based on finances, material well-being, health and quality of life. This year, the U.S. managed to nudge up one spot to number 16 out of 43 countries. The move was just a modest improvement compared with Ireland, which moved up seven spots to debut in the Top 10 for...

September 7, 2018
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07Sep

UK. Pension savers heading for retirement shock as average contributions fall – experts warn

Total membership of occupational pension schemes in the UK was an estimated 41.1 million in 2017, the highest level recorded by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) survey. But looking at defined contribution (DC) pension schemes in the private sector, the average contribution rate being paid into savings pots by employees and their employers was 3.4 percent in 2017, falling from 4.2 percent in 2016. The launch of automatic enrolment into workplace pensions, which started in 2012, has boosted the number...

September 7, 2018
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07Sep

India. RINL unions flay move to cut contribution to pension fund

Various staff unions of the Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited (RINL) on Wednesday criticised the management’s move to contribute just two percent towards the pension fund for the non-executive employees. ‘Agreement violated’ In a memorandum to RINL Chairman-cum-Managing Director P. Raychaudhury on Wednesday, the unions including the recognised ones said the move was in contrary with the terms of the National Joint Committee on Steel Agreement reached in July 2014 wherein it was decided to contribute six percent of salary by the...

September 7, 2018
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06Sep

UK. Industry comment on Pensions Dashboard announcement

Steve Webb, Director of Policy at Royal London said: “This announcement is a huge breakthrough after a period of uncertainty. There is much that the industry can do to deliver a dashboard, but only the government can supply vitally important state pension data and only the government can legislate to make sure that the dashboard’s coverage is comprehensive. Backed by this renewed commitment by the government, the whole pension industry now needs to work together to drive forward this...

September 6, 2018
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06Sep

What are the retirement ages around the world?

Retirement ages, or the age when some sort of government pension can be received, varies around the world. The OECD average for a normal pension age is currently 64.3 years for men and 63.7 years for women. While life expectancy has risen in many countries and governments grapple with ageing populations, any attempts to make people wait longer to collect benefits are usually met with fierce opposition, as Russia and Australia found out recently. Read more sbs

September 6, 2018
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06Sep

Pensions and insurers give new impetus to Asia’s ETFs

Yield-chasing has been a persistent theme among Asian insurers. “As low interest rates reduce the income-generating ability of fixed-income investments, insurers are looking to diversify their return sources,” says Brian Roberts, senior vice‑president and head of exchange-traded products at HKEX. “Investors can’t control market returns, but can control fees that eat away at their returns. The low-cost, tax-efficient nature of ETFs is one of the reasons we’re seeing stronger interest among insurers.” According to data compiled by research provider ETFGI,...

September 6, 2018
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06Sep

South Africa. PFA decisions can now be appealed with the Financial Services Tribunal

Until recently PFA determinations could only be taken on appeal to the High Court - at great cost - within six weeks of the decision. The Financial Sector Regulation Act, 9 of 2017 (“FSR Act”) considers the Pension Funds Adjudicator as a “decision-maker” and his/her decisions are “decisions” as respectively defined in paragraphs (e) and (d) of section 218 thereof. This section came into effect on 1 April 2018 along with the FSR Act. Thus, the tribunal is now in a...

September 6, 2018
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05Sep

ESG Investing: A Blue Ocean For Corporate Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plans

The executive order on retirement savings, which President Trump signed on Friday, shines a spotlight on corporate-sponsored retirement plans. The $28.0 trillion U.S. retirement market offers opportunities for growth in environmental, social and governance (ESG) assets under management (AUM), particularly among corporate-sponsored retirement plans. 60% of corporate plan sponsors that participated in a recent NEPC survey indicated that they were not interested in incorporating ESG investing, which means considering ESG factors in both investment decisions and ownership policies and practices. Read...

September 5, 2018
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