May 2018

30May

More than half of older people in Latin America & the Caribbean don’t receive pensions: Report

A new study by two United Nations’ agencies has found that more than half of older persons in Latin America and the Caribbean do not receive a pension from a contributing system. In the joint publication, released in Santiago, Chile on Wednesday, by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) and the International Labor Organization (ILO), the lack of income from a contributory pension system in more than half of all men, and above all in women,...

May 30, 2018
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29May

Akropolis Aims to Defuse the Pension Time Bomb with Blockchain

The global state pension industry is in dire straits. Many pension programs around the world are grossly undercapitalized and moving swiftly towards insolvency. For example, the Russian Pension Fund deficit is forecasted to double in 2018, while the combined shortfall in funding public pension obligations in 20 OECD countries amounts to $78 trillion, according to a Citibank report. This situation threatens to strip millions of people of their hard-earned benefits in their old age. Globally, the retirement-age population will grow...

May 29, 2018
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29May

UK. Pension advisers are charging high fees for cheap funds

Pension drawdown investors are being short-changed by advisers who recommend cheap tracker funds but charge higher fees typically paid for a more diversified portfolio. Provided that the risk profile of the investment matches that of the client, such advice is not technically wrong and, on the surface, appears cost-saving. But it also allows the adviser to extract more fees for less work. Simon Williams (not his real name), 60, is one such client. The accountant wishes to remain anonymous because his...

May 29, 2018
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29May

Australia floats shake-up of $2 trillion pension system, “zombie” insurance

Fund managers who perform poorly face being locked out of Australia’s A$2.6 trillion ($1.96 trillion) pension industry if recommendations from the government’s top economic advisory body are implemented. The Productivity Commission said in a report on Tuesday that a shortlist of up to 10 strong-performing pension products, chosen by an independent panel, should be presented to workers from which to choose when they enter the workforce. If adopted, the Commission’s model would replace a system whereby the employer chooses a fund...

May 29, 2018
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28May

Tax cuts hasten demise of US corporate pensions

FedEx just spent $6 billion buying an annuity from MetLife. It's joining a growing list of U.S. companies offloading pension obligations. Lower U.S. tax rates are encouraging more firms to do the same. It's good for older workers, but it's another nail in the coffin of employer-provided retirement security for millennials. December's corporate tax cuts make it easier for FedEx and others to do just that. Companies can take a tax deduction on pension contributions at the old 35 percent...

May 28, 2018
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28May

US tech giants don’t just have your data – they are in your pension too

The population of the US, at 325 million, makes up just over 4% of the world’s total population. But its stock market, fuelled by the rise of Apple, Google, Amazon and Facebook, comprises 60% of the value of all shares traded on the planet. The Dow Jones index of Wall Street-traded companies stood at 16,000 in early 2016, but is about 25,000 now. And the Nasdaq index of tech shares has nearly doubled in just two years. Together, Apple,...

May 28, 2018
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25May

What is the Future of Pensions in the UK?

The future of pensions in the UK appears bleak at present, as sustained austerity measures and issues and incrementally rising life expectancies continue to stretch state resources beyond their means. This was borne out in last year’s announcement that the government were considering increasing the retirement age for both men and women to 68 ahead of schedule, in order to reduce the average length of retirement and provide some much needed respite. But what exactly does the future of pensions look...

May 25, 2018
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25May

Financially stressed workers likely to draw on retirement plans

Financial stress is taking its toll on employees, causing them to partake in rather risky money behavior: tapping into their 401(k) or other retirement savings in an attempt to get back on track. More than half of workers (54%) who identify as being financially stressed say they will likely use their retirement funds for expenses other than retirement, according to PwC’s 2018 Employee Financial Wellness Survey, out this week. That’s compared to 33% of their colleagues who say they’re not...

May 25, 2018
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24May

Malta declines EU’s recommendation to raise retirement age

Malta's government committed on Wednesday not to raising the retirement age, which was recommended by the European Commission (EC). The European Commission has recommended that Malta safeguards the sustainability of its health care and pension systems by raising retirement age and restricting early retirement. In a press statement, Malta's government said "it is committed to retain free health care for its citizens and to continue to work towards a more sustainable pension system without changing the pensionable age". Read More: XinhuaNet

May 24, 2018
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24May

Kenya. MCAs step up push for independent pension scheme

Members of the County Assemblies (MCAs) from all the 47 counties are pushing for the establishment of an independent pension scheme. The County Pension Bill, which  has been stuck in Parliament for some time, recently underwent a second reading. The MCAs want the Bill fasttracked to enable counties move their staff from the current non-contributory arrangement to a contributory pensions administrator. “We want a pension scheme which is not managed by national government but with an independent administrator so that counties...

May 24, 2018
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