December 2017

27Dec

Armenia’s population continues ageing

The population of Armenia is ageing, says the report “The Demographic Handbook of Armenia, 2017,” published by Armenia’s National Statistical Service (NSS) on December 24. One of the main problems associated with the demographic situation is the population ageing, the process of which was greatly accelerated in Armenia during the post-Soviet period, the report says. In accordance with the United Nations’ scale of population ageing, if the share of the population aged 65 and over exceeds 7 percent of a country’s...

December 27, 2017
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26Dec

Brazil’s Temer urges pension reform in Christmas message

Brazilian President Michel Temer took advantage of his Christmas message broadcast Sunday night to once again urge congress to approve his controversial pension reform plan. Referencing the recent approval of pension reform in neighboring Argentina, he insisted the issue is not “ideological or partisan” — but rather a “question of the future of the country” to “guarantee pensioners of today and tomorrow their pensions.” The centerpiece policy of scaling back pensions has been met with dismay by most Brazilians —...

December 26, 2017
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26Dec

Kazakhstan may merge oil, pension funds: president

Kazakhstan may merge its $23 billion state pension fund with the $57 billion oil fund in order to streamline their management, President Nursultan Nazarbayev said on Monday. The oil-rich Central Asian nation hires foreigners to manage most of its oil fund assets and the addition of the pension fund could create more opportunities to expand. “Norway has good experience, they have merged their pension fund with their national (oil) fund, similar to the one we have,” Nazarbayev said on state television. Read...

December 26, 2017
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22Dec

New laws proposed by UK government on bulk transfers of pension rights

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) opened a consultation on the proposed new Contracting-out (Transfer and Transfer Payment) (Amendment) Regulations 2018 (16-page / 263KB PDF) on Thursday. It is the DWP's intention that the new rules would take effect from 6 April 2018. "These amendments will enable any salary-related occupational pensions right (active, deferred and pensioner) to be transferred to newly established schemes (that have never been contracted out) without member consent under specified conditions," the DWP said. "These conditions will be that...

December 22, 2017
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22Dec

Spain. CaixaBank Buys Banco BPI’s Card Business

Portugal's Banco BPI S/A (BPI.LB) will sell its card and point-of-sale activities to entities associated with CaixaBank SA (CABK.MC) for a total of 113 million euros ($134.1 million), the two banks said Thursday. CaixaBank SA (CABK.MC) holds a controlling stake in Banco BPI. CaixaBank Payments E.P., a wholly-owned subsidiary of CaixaBank, will acquire Banco BPI's credit and debit card-emitting activities for EUR53 million. At the same time, Comercia Global Payments E.P., a joint venture between CaixaBank and Global Payments Inc., will acquire...

December 22, 2017
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22Dec

Thousands of UK Toys R Us jobs saved after deal with pensions body

Thousands of jobs at Toys R Us have been saved after the ailing toy retailer agreed to pump more than £9m into its pension plan over the next two years in a last-minute deal with the state-backed pensions lifeboat. The Pension Protection Fund joined landlords and other creditors in backing Toys R Us’s company voluntary arrangement (CVA) plan, which involves the closure of at least 26 loss-making stores from next spring as well as reducing the size of others. Consultations...

December 22, 2017
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21Dec

EU watchdog says insurance sector well capitalised despite risks

The European Union’s insurance sector is well capitalised despite challenges such as low interest rates and the disasters that have hit reinsurers, the bloc’s insurance and pension watchdog said on Wednesday. The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA), in a financial stability report, said that in addition to low rates, low market volatility and high levels of economic and political uncertainty were major challenges to the industry. “Despite these challenges, the insurance sector remains well capitalised”, EIOPA said, noting that...

December 21, 2017
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21Dec

Could Tech Relieve Singapore’s Aging Woes?

Singapore is embracing technology and focusing more on personal health, as an expected doubling of seniors over the next two decades forces the nation to confront politically sensitive decisions on financing and immigration. While Singapore’s aging population is something to celebrate in reflecting longevity, it’s also forcing the city state to become more nimble in how it approaches the challenges, Chee Hong Tat, senior minister of state for health and communications and information, said in an interview Tuesday. “You need to help...

December 21, 2017
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21Dec

British Steel pensions scandal: the story so far

This year's restructuring of the British Steel Pension Scheme (BSPS), the savings pot for workers at the Port Talbot steelworks, followed nearly 12 months of negotiations and helped to lift the threat of closure that had loomed over the factory. Union members voted to accept the closure of the BSPS, which paved the way for Indian conglomerate Tata, which runs the steelworks, to merge its European steel business with German steelmaker ThyssenKrupp. That means the scheme will fall into the Pension...

December 21, 2017
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