December 2020

09Dec

Nearly Half Of UK Pension Savers Unaware They Are Saving Into Pension

EQ research shows that under half (48%) of full-time workers believe they are saving into a pension However, official statistics finds 88% of eligible employees are saving into an occupational pension scheme Findings demonstrate the success of auto-enrolment in pushing savers into later-life saving but need for further engagement Analysis from EQ (Equiniti Group plc), one of the largest providers of outsourced pension administration in the UK, suggests that nearly half of the UK's full-time workers don't realise that...

December 9, 2020
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09Dec

U.S. employers eyeing innovative features for defined contribution retirement plans, Willis Towers Watson survey finds

A majority of U.S. employers are eyeing innovative features for their defined contribution (DC) plans to boost their value, fortify retirement savings and enhance employees’ overall financial wellbeing, according to a survey by leading global advisory, broking and solutions company Willis Towers Watson. The survey also found employer interest in lifetime income options is accelerating as plan sponsors look for ways to help employees generate a steady flow of income in retirement. The 2020 U.S. Defined Contribution Plan Sponsor...

December 9, 2020
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08Dec

Covid-19 poses long-term threat to pension savings – OECD

The Covid-19 pandemic has increased the risk that people will not be able to save enough for their retirement, according to a new OECD study. Read also FinTech In The Time Of COVID: What Financial Services Companies Need To Know The economic impact of the crisis and the shutdowns that many countries have adopted in an effort to halt the spread of the virus has affected the ability of workers and their employers to contribute to private retirement plans, the...

December 8, 2020
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08Dec

A silver lining for aging Asia

Many Asian economies will age more rapidly over the next several decades, including Hong Kong, Japan, mainland China, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan and Thailand. Asia’s working-age population peaked in 2015 and will gradually decline at an accelerating rate in the coming decades. By 2050, the elderly population in these countries on average is expected to increase to 27% from 7% in 1995. Reduced labor supply creates a drag on growth, but this can be mitigated by higher labor participation,...

December 8, 2020
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08Dec

The Consequences of Long-Term State Pension Underperformance

The financial health of state pension plans has worsened and advisors should avoid municipal bonds from certain issuers. Each year Cliffwater LLC prepares an annual report on the financial condition of state pension plans over time. This year’s report covers 66 state pension plans and almost $3 trillion in assets. Following is a summary of some of the key highlights of the report, which covers the 19 fiscal years ending June 2019: Following the great bull market of the...

December 8, 2020
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07Dec

COVID-19 has worsened the woes of South Asia’s informal sector

By Maurizio Bussolo, Siddarth Sharma, Hans Timmer Informal employment, which includes temporary workers, day laborers, service, or domestic workers, has long been associated with underdevelopment. Following the same logic, informality is expected to disappear gradually as countries further develop and prosper. Yet, despite decades of sustained high growth, South Asia's informal sector shows little sign of abating—even increasing in some cases. More than 80 percent of all South Asia's workers engage in informal activities, and more than 90 percent of the...

December 7, 2020
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07Dec

For institutional investors, ETFs can make meeting liquidity needs easier

Liquidity is never far from the minds of institutional asset owners but the importance of having a comprehensive liquidity plan came into sharp relief during the pandemic-induced spike in market volatility earlier this year. When stock prices plummeted in February and March, the asset allocation of many institutional portfolios fell out of synch with policy benchmarks, with asset owners finding themselves significantly underweight equity and overweight fixed income. That would have been the perfect time to rebalance, but an...

December 7, 2020
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07Dec

Top 5 Banking And Fintech Trends For 2021

Observations from the fintech snark bank tank 2021: The Year of Value Chain Disruption I’ve never been a big fan of “Year of the [fill-in-the-blank]” proclamations. Google the term “year of the customer” and you’ll find that every year for the past 15 years has been heralded as the year of the customer. Hey, one year it might just really happen. And past claims of “disruption” in financial services have centered on changes at the customer interaction level—i.e., digital...

December 7, 2020
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04Dec

Chilean lawmakers approve second pensions withdrawal

Chilean lawmakers on Thursday gave final approval to a bill that allows citizens to make a second withdrawal from pension funds so they can cope with the economic havoc wreaked by the coronavirus pandemic. The bill, which passed its last legislative hurdle with a Senate vote late on Thursday, allows for another 10% withdrawal from Chile’s privately managed pension funds. The measure was introduced by conservative President Sebastian Pinera’s government two weeks ago to head off a more comprehensive...

December 4, 2020
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04Dec

EIOPA launches discussion paper on a methodology for integrating climate change in the standard formula

Today, the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) published a discussion paper on a methodology for the potential inclusion of climate change in the Solvency II standard formula when calculating natural catastrophe underwriting risk. This discussion paper is a follow-up to EIOPA’s Opinion on Sustainability within Solvency II issued in September last year, which concluded that there is a need to consider if and how climate change-related perils could be better captured in the Solvency II framework...

December 4, 2020
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