March 2022

US. How to Improve Retirement Readiness in Under-represented Groups

For plan sponsors wondering what they can do to help diverse workers increase their retirement savings, a new paper outlines plan features and strategies that can help bolster savings for underserved workers. In Improving Retirement Readiness for Underrepresented Groups, Alight explains that employers have benefited from a diverse population of employees, as these individuals brought unique perspectives to the workplace. These employees have also brought a wide range of retirement savings behaviors that have not necessarily led to positive outcomes,...

Asia’s immense opportunities for impact investing

Investors have always known their business decisions have a social and environmental impact, but there was not enough evidence to measure it. It was more like a fringe benefit. But with increased awareness, more empirical evidence, shifting brand perceptions and the explosive emergence of social media, more investors, big and small, are paying attention to environmental, social and governance (ESG) risks and investing with the intent to make an impact. In Asia, exciting developments in the impact investing market are opening...

UK. Pension dashboards are coming - action for occupational pension schemes to take now

UK. Pension dashboards are coming – action for occupational pension schemes to take now

Establishing a system of “pension dashboards” to enable individuals who have yet to take retirement benefits to find clear, standardised information about all their pension arrangements (including rights to state pension) in one place is a key element of the government’s pension strategy. The ambition is laudable but achieving it will be a mammoth task, requiring significant time and resource from occupational pension scheme trustees, pension managers and administrators. All UK occupational pension schemes with 100 or more non-pensioner members...

People Are Now Living More Years in Good Health

People Are Now Living More Years in Good Health

Older adults may not only be living longer, but better as well, according to a new U.K. study. Researchers found that since the 1990s, British adults age 65 and up have been enjoying more years living independently, free of disability. That's despite the fact that many chronic health conditions have become more common. In fact, disability-free years rose not only among healthy seniors, but those living with conditions like heart disease, diabetes, arthritis and vision and hearing problems. Experts called the findings...

Engagement essential for schemes to turn the tide on plastic waste

Engagement essential for schemes to turn the tide on plastic waste

The role pension schemes play in overcoming plastic pollution is multifaceted, and communicating it with members only adds another layer of complexity, experts warn. Read also Global Pension Asset Values Grow to Record $56 Trillion in 2021 The transition to net zero requires a multifaceted approach over how we use non-renewable materials. Up to 12.7mn tonnes of plastic enter the oceans each year causing damage to marine life and ecosystems, according to the journal Science, and while the scale of the...

Zimbabwe: Tougher Action Against Employers Not Remitting Pension Contributions

Zimbabwe: Tougher Action Against Employers Not Remitting Pension Contributions

Errant employers who do not remit the pension contributions of their employees will soon face both criminal charges and civil action with the proposed Pension Fund and Provident Fund Act now being debated by the Senate, upgrading the present law to protect pension funds. The Bill being debated this week in Senate replaces the present Pension and Provident Funds Act and upgrades the requirements for the registration and administration of pension and provident funds. Clause 17 of the Bill compels employers...

OECD adopts revised good DC design messages as recommendation

OECD adopts revised good DC design messages as recommendation

The OECD has published a 10-point plan for the good design of defined contribution (DC) pension plans, elevating the updated “roadmap” to the status of an OECD Council recommendation. The initial guidelines were published in 2012, with the OECD’s working party on private pensions (WPPP) deciding to revise the report to incorporate all the work conducted over the years since and “to maintain its relevance given current contextual realities and the cumulated experience observed in OECD jurisdictions”. “It’s a comprehensive update...

Inflation is causing some older Americans to delay retirement plans, survey shows

US. Inflation is causing some older Americans to delay retirement plans, survey shows

As inflation rises, many Americans are shifting life milestones, including retirement. Some 13% of Gen Xers and baby boomers say they have postponed or considered delaying plans to leave the workforce due to soaring costs. Read also US. The Smart Way for Public Pensions to Divest from Russia That’s according to a survey from the Nationwide Retirement Institute, showing a cross-generational wave of Americans canceling or postponing major events due to rising prices. Read also Global Pension Asset Values Grow to Record $56...

Research reveals shortcomings in retirement preparedness in the UK

Research reveals shortcomings in retirement preparedness in the UK

Berkshire and Buckinghamshire residents are most prepared for retirement, despite only 52.3 per cent of residents being on track for a moderate income, the Hargreaves Lansdown Savings and Resilience barometer has revealed. The research showed that around 50.6 per cent of residents in Surrey, East and West Sussex were on track for a moderate retirement income, defined by the PLSA as around £20,800 per year for a single person and £30,600 per year for a couple. In addition to this, around...

Malaysia needs an all-encompassing national pension system

AS Malaysia joins the rest of the world in becoming an ageing society, it has become imperative for the government to address the challenges that increasing life expectancy pose to social security arrangements. Increasing life expectancy brings with it sweeping changes in population needs and capacities. The most evident sign is the strain on the pension system as the number of people requiring protection and support is on the rise. There are growing concerns that many are not prepared for a...