May 2025
09May

The Singular Role of Public Pension Funds in Corporate Governance

By Jill E. Fisch & Jeff Schwartz With more than $5 trillion in assets, public pension funds are significant players in financial markets. Like private asset managers, public pension fund managers are typically expected to exercise their discretion over investing and engagement to serve the interests of the funds’ beneficiaries exclusively, a model that we term “beneficiary primacy.” To this end, beneficiary primacy imposes fiduciary duties on fund managers to maximize the economic value of the fund. We argue that...

May 9, 2025
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06May

US. House Committee advances proposal to cut back on federal employee pensions

In April, Representative James Comer (R-KY) announced a series of proposals that would force many federal civilian employees to pay higher premiums for retirement benefits and to lower their benefits by changing the formula for calculating payments, and last week the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability approved, by a narrow vote, to advance the proposals. Last Wednesday’s vote now advances the bill to the House Budget Committee, where it may face resistance from Republican lawmakers who might be reluctant...

May 6, 2025
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05May

Brazil social security minister latest to quit in major pension fraud scandal

Brazil's Social Security Minister, Carlos Lupi, has resigned nine days after police unveiled a major corruption scandal which defrauded pensioners of $1.1bn (£829m). Federal police allege that over the past decade, the National Social Security Institute (INSS) made unauthorised deductions from payments made to millions of pensioners. The money was allegedly paid to several associations and unions, which then shared the earnings with corrupt government officials. Lupi has always denied any wrongdoing and said he ordered an investigation as soon as he...

May 5, 2025
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April 2025
25Apr

Varying effects of public pensions: Pension spending and old-age employment under different pension regimes

By Kun Lee Socioeconomic consequences of pension reforms have often been discussed without careful consideration of institutional contexts, despite the fact that institutional designs of public pensions differ substantially across countries. This study argues that the outcomes of pension reforms vary depending on the institutional structure of public pensions, by showing that the associations between public pension spending and old-age employment rates of different socio-demographic groups vary across different institutional contexts. Using time-series cross-section data from 20 European countries and...

April 25, 2025
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March 2025
20Mar

US. Some retirees will see bump in Social Security benefit starting next month

Retirement just got a little boost for many public sector retirees and their spouses. By the end of this month, more than 3 million Social Security recipients affected by the Social Security Fairness Act that President Biden signed into law in January will see a bump in their benefits. This law increases monthly Social Security benefits for certain types of workers, including some teachers, firefighters, and police officers in many states, federal employees covered by the Civil Service Retirement System, and...

March 20, 2025
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February 2025
26Feb

US. Public Pension Plans Reach 5-Year High of 83.1% Funded

Public pension funds’ funded status has risen to a five-year high amid equity market strength, according to a study from the National Conference of Public Employees Retirement Systems. The annual NCPERS retirement study, which the organization has conducted since 2011, found that the average public pension has seen its funded status reach 83.1% through the first half of 2024, typically when the fiscal years for these plans ended. The report also found that discount rates have decreased to an average of 6.67%...

February 26, 2025
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12Feb

UK. Labour Confirms No WASPI Compensation Despite Ombudsman Findings

The Labour government has announced that it will not provide compensation to WASPI (Women Against State Pension Inequality) campaigners, despite findings of maladministration by the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO). The decision comes after years of campaigning by women born in the 1950s, who argue that failures in state pension communication left them financially unprepared for increases to the state pension age. While the government has accepted the ombudsman’s findings and apologised for delays in notifying affected women, it has ruled out compensation, citing the difficulty of identifying those who suffered financial losses and the potential...

February 12, 2025
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10Feb

Youth Climate Council Ghana rejects Parliament’s plan to use carbon funds for MPs’ pensions

The Youth Climate Council Ghana (YCC) has strongly condemned a recent proposal by Parliament to fund Members of Parliament’s (MPs) pension schemes using revenue from the country’s carbon credit market. The youth-led organisation has labelled the move as a direct violation of Ghana’s climate commitments and a dangerous misallocation of resources meant for sustainability initiatives. It has therefore asked Parliament to revoke the proposal and prioritise long-term environmental and economic sustainability over short-term political convenience. According to YCC, diverting carbon finance...

February 10, 2025
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January 2025
31Jan

NIRS’ Pensionomics 2025 Report

By Andrew Clark Earlier this month, the National Institute on Retirement Security (NIRS) released its bi-annual Pensionomics report, which details how spending from defined-benefit pensions boosts economies in communities nationwide and continues to be a reliable economic driver for millions of people. The report examines the impact of pensions on local economies nationwide by calculating the benefits paid to retirees and the subsequent spending generated by these benefits. This analysis includes tax revenue and local expenditures, which stimulate the broader economy, leading...

January 31, 2025
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28Jan

Russia Announces Major Pension Indexation Updates

Russian President Vladimir Putin recently announced significant updates to the pension indexation system, which will take effect from January 2025. These changes aim to adjust pension payments based on actual inflation rates, enhancing the financial support available to millions of retirees across the country. Starting January, the insurance pensions for both working and non-working pensioners were initially indexed by 7.3%. Recognizing the necessity for more substantial support amid rising inflation, Putin proposed to retroactively increase the indexation to 9.5% effective...

January 28, 2025
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