February 2018

The UK’s pensions timebomb: which companies have the biggest black holes?

If you ask experts what the scariest thing about the pensions black hole it is that no one knows how big it is. Following the collapse of Carillion, the Prime Minister said there would be “tough new rules for executives who try to line their own pockets by putting their workers’ pensions at risk.” In February last year, a green paper was issued calling for views on giving the Pensions Regulator the power to issue “substantial fines on companies for...

France and Germany push back on European pension plan

The document, discussed this week by EU member states experts, aims to influence negotiations on the future pan-European personal pensions product, one plank of the capital markets union plan. France and Germany have pushed back on two big features of the proposals. Read More: Global Capital

Brazilian court orders arrest of ex-chief of BNY Mellon Brazil unit in corruption probe

A federal court on Thursday ordered the arrest of the former chief executive officer of Bank of New York Mellon Corp’s unit in Brazil, a source with knowledge of the matter said. The court in Brasilia issued the order to detain José Carlos Xavier de Oliveira, said the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity. The court declined to comment. All proceedings are under seal. BNY Mellon declined to comment on the arrest order. The CEO of Brazilian state development bank BNDES,...

UK. Number of millionaires rises by a third as pension wealth grows

The number of millionaires in Britain has risen by a third driven by increasing pension wealth, figures from the Office for National Statistics show. The most recent figures, from July 2016, show that there are 3.5m households in the country with more than a million pounds' worth of assets, up from 2.75m in the 2012-14 figures. Overall average wealth rose by 15 per cent to £259,400 by July 2016, though the rising cost of living is not taken into account. Read More: The...

US. As Super Bowl approaches, NFL pension plan still underfunded

As fans everywhere prepare to sit down with bowls of chili and platters of wings to watch the Super Bowl, they might be interested to know that pro football players could be facing some of the same pension problems their fans are: the NFL Players’ Pension Plan is only 73 percent funded, according to an analysis from the Society of Actuaries. That’s based on data from 2015, the most recent year for which data is publicly available, and it is an improvement...

Barbados. Don’t touch our pensions, warns Phillips

The business centric political party Solutions Barbados is warning the Freundel Stuart administration not to “plunder our pensions” in a desperate bid to clear the island’s fiscal deficit and improve its foreign exchange reserves. The party’s leader Grenville Phillips II told Barbados TODAY alarm bells went off this morning when Governor of the Central Bank Cleviston Haynes said Government was considering pensions as part of the overall plan to resuscitate the stalled economy. Read more Barbados Today

UK. GPs retire early amid clampdown on multi-million pension pots

The number of GPs taking early retirement has risen sharply following a clampdown on multi-million pound pension pots, new figures show. An investigation shows 62 per cent of GPs who retired in 2016/17 did so before the age of 60 - having made up just 33 per cent of cases in 2011/12. Read more The Telegraph News

Brazilian president defends social security reform

Brazilian President Michel Temer defended the social security system reform Wednesday saying that the reform is "not a boogeyman." "Every time we speak of social security reform, there is resistance. But soon after, when the reviews are made, people see that the reform is not a boogeyman," Temer said during a concession ceremony for pre-salt oil exploration areas. he government said the reform is necessary to tackle the significant deficit in the social security system and ensure the future payment of...

January 2018

Pension funds AP1 and AMF invest 20 mln euros in fintech firm iZettle

Swedish pension funds AP1 and AMF are investing 20 million euros ($24.88 million) in mobile payment solutions firm iZettle, the three parties said in a joint statement on Wednesday. * The main part of the stake was bought from Santander Innoventures, which will remain a shareholder also going forward * The news comes after iZettle raised 40 million euros in December in a funding round led by venture capital firm Dawn and the Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund (AP4)   Read more Reuters

Zimbabwe. Mnangagwa rushes to legalise Tsvangirai’s pension

Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa has moved with speed to amend the 2018 budget statement presented late last year before Parliament to incorporate President Emmerson Mnangagwa's desire to pay former Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai a gratuity and pension. According to NewZimbabwe.com, the amendment comes hardly two weeks after Harare Central MP Murisi Zwizwai (MDC-T) asked why the Finance Bill was silent on the pension payments to Tsvangirai when it made reference to pensions of the President, Deputy President, Speaker of Parliament,...