March 2021

Canada’s Largest Federal Pension Plan Divests From US Private Prisons

Government pension plans provide a sense of security to millions of workers globally — allowing workers to sleep more soundly knowing they will have money to support themselves and their families. But most pensioners have no idea where their money is actually being invested. Imagine the horror of discovering that your family’s security is actually being attained by separating someone else’s family. This is precisely what just happened in Canada as pensioners discovered their money was being invested in private...

PensionBee targets £55m capital raise as IPO plans confirmed

PensionBee is aiming to raise £55m through issuing new shares, as the pension provider has confirmed its intention to list on the London Stock Exchange. The group, which first made its intentions public on March 23, today (March 30) published its registration document for an IPO on the LSE. Read also UK women have up to 45% less in pension at retirement than men The £1.5bn AUA company is applying for admission in the high growth segment of the main market on...

Lebanon crisis robs pensioners of cash cushions

Samir Merhi returned to Lebanon in 2009, hoping the fortune he made abroad would let him retire comfortably at home, but the country's economic crisis has upended his dreams and forced him to leave again. For four decades, Merhi said he made "millions" working in the fashion and construction industries in Britain and the Gulf, but draconian controls imposed by Lebanese banks have trapped his life savings. Speaking in a hotel in Beirut's commercial district of Hamra, Merhi said he was...

AFP: Retiros de fondos de pensiones beneficiaron a hogares no vulnerables, según el FMI

El Fondo Monetario Internacional (FMI) advirtió que los retiros de los fondos de pensiones de las AFP en el Perú no estuvieron dirigidos a los hogares más vulnerables, sino que beneficiaron principalmente a hogares más acomodados. Leer también Perú. AFP: Congreso aprobó nuevo retiro de hasta S/ 17,600 de fondos de pensiones Pese a que precisan que los retiros pudieron ayudar a respaldar el consumo, este efecto no fue tan fuerte como el que se esperaba. "La disposición adicional del efectivo puede...

South African retirement fund guidelines are changing – how will this affect you?

South African retirement savings are governed by the Pensions Fund Act. Within this act, Regulation 28 lays out the maximum percentage of a fund that can be invested in different asset classes. For example, only 30% is permitted to be invested offshore. This aims to force diversification and prevent savers from keeping all their eggs in one asset basket. WHAT ARE THE PROPOSED REGULATION 28 CHANGES? The changes mean to make it easier for funds to invest in infrastructure and provide a way...

UK women have up to 45% less in pension at retirement than men

The UK pensions system disadvantages women compared to men, with females having between 25% to 45% less in their pension pots at retirement, new data has shown. According to analysis from professional services consultancy Barnett Waddingham, the gender pension gap begins to diverge most after the age of 32, with men contributing up to £1,500 ($2,068) per annum more into their pension than women. This is despite contributing the same percentage of their salary. The research, which analysed the data and saving...

US. Pension relief paves way for more de-risking

The $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act signed by President Biden contains the most important changes in single employer pension funding relief rules since the introduction of the Pension Protection Act in 2006. What is changing? The new rules enforce two key changes in how minimum required contributions (MRCs) are calculated. Read also Retirees who pay the most in taxes make only $36,000 a year on average, study finds Firstly, the Act extends and enhances the Interest Rate Stabilization mechanisms brought in over the last decade (specifically, Moving...

Retirees who pay the most in taxes make only $36,000 a year on average, study finds

Retirees who have the most money pay the most in taxes, according to a recent working paper, but they’re not necessarily rich. “Most of the tax burden is carried by the top quintile of households,” Anqi Chen, co-author and assistant director of savings research at the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College, told Yahoo Money. But “it's important to keep in mind that when we think about the top quintile of households — the top 20% — they're not...

España. Las aportaciones a planes de pensiones caen un 16 % en los dos primeros meses

La Asociación de Instituciones de Inversión Colectiva y Fondos de Pensiones (Inverco) ha asegurado esta tarde que las aportaciones al sistema individual de los planes de pensiones han caído un 16 % en los dos primeros meses del año. En un acto organizado por El Español e Invertia, el presidente de la entidad, Ángel Martínez-Aldama, ha aprovechado también para recordar que calculan que la caída podría alcanzar el 30 % en el conjunto del año como consecuencia de la entrada...

Chile begins debate on third pension withdrawal amid second wave of the pandemic

The Constitution Committee of the Chamber of Deputies will analyze five legislative initiatives, opposed by the Government and presented by parliamentarians and pro-government members, and will decide whether to merge them into a single one, since they have similar characteristics. Read also Colombia govt presents capital markets bill The approval of a third withdrawal is almost assured, although it has generated much debate in recent months and the Government has threatened to appeal it in courts, under the premise that close...