By European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority This report outlines the latest market developments in the occupational pensions sector, with a focus on IORPs and their cross-border arrangements. A factsheet summarizing the key findings accompanies the publication, providing a visual overview of the main trends in Europe's IORP sector for interested readers. Get the report here
In June, the Department for Work and Pensions launched a consultation on UK sustainability reporting standards and corporate disclosure requirements – adding it would also consider whether to update the current rules for pension schemes. In this article, Tegs Harding takes a look at the current TCFD framework and asks how it could be improved. There's no doubt that the introduction of the Taskforce on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) regime was a milestone; It pushed climate risk onto trustee agendas...
By Andreas (Andy) Jobst The paper examines the critical need for enhanced financial regulation to support green infrastructure investment as climate action becomes increasingly pressing. It points out that infrastructure is responsible for more than two-thirds of global greenhouse gas emissions and that climate-related disasters lead to annual losses of nearly one percent of GDP, with poorer countries being disproportionately affected. Green infrastructure plays a crucial role in reducing carbon footprints through renewable energy and low-emission transport, as well as...
By Olga Balakina, Charlotte Christiansen & Malene Kallestrup Lamb This paper examines how offering sustainable investment options influences sustainable consumption behavior. We combine a natural experiment in which individuals receive an option to switch to a pension plan with a strong sustainability profile with detailed household register data. This sustainable option improves sustainable consumption, as reflected in electric vehicle adoption and reduced vehicle emissions. The effect is primarily driven by individuals who do not choose the sustainable plan. We show that...
Global sustainable funds have made a comeback, marking a notable improvement from the outflows seen in the previous quarter, according to data published today. The latest global figures published by Morningstar show that global ESG funds recorded an estimated net $4.9bn (€4.16bn) in the second quarter of 2025. This recovery was driven by European investors, with ESG funds drawing $8.6bn of net inflows over the past three months, after redeeming $7.3bn in the prior quarter, the firm said. This rebound comes after...
It is safe to say that asset owners are increasingly scrutinising how their managers are approaching sustainability. And PME, the Dutch pension fund for those in the metal and technology sector, is at the forefront of these efforts. The €59 billion asset owner is in the process of revising its approach to selecting and assessing managers to ensure the ones they use are delivering on its return expectations and are aligned with its values. Daan SpaargarenEvaluating managers on ESG is not new, notes...
More than 80 investors and financial institutions have called on the EU to preserve the core of the EU Sustainable Finance Framework. Key European investors supporting the statement include Allianz SE, First Sentier Investors, La Banque Postale AM, Nordea, PKA and Storebrand AM. The signatories stated that regulatory simplification can be achieved without compromising on the substance of sustainability rules or their significant benefits for businesses across the EU. They have recommended that the European Sustainability Reporting Standards – which...
The government has announced that it is considering whether to update the current rules surrounding pension schemes' sustainability reporting, confirming that it will review the 2021 Climate Change Reporting Regulations this year as part of this. The update was one of a number of measures announced by the government today, as it shared three consultations, which form part of the first phase of its work to modernise the UK’s sustainable finance framework. This included a consultation on the draft UK Sustainability...
UK pension schemes are increasingly committed to climate- and nature-focused investing, even amid geopolitical instability and the growing politicisation of net-zero, according to new research. The report, Climate Innovation – Investing in the Net-Zero Economy, released by Pensions for Purpose and commissioned by SAIL Investments, found that 40% of UK pension schemes now have dedicated climate allocations, while 60% regard climate risk as a core fiduciary responsibility. “In our conversations with pension funds, we found that they do not expect political volatility, particularly in the US,...
By Christine Corlet Walker, Dario Leoni & Tim Jackson Ecological economists have increasingly warned that continual reliance on economic growth poses existential threats to environmental sustainability. A post-growth economy would instead prioritise environmental and societal prosperity over economic accumulation. But this transition demands a careful scrutiny of ‘growth dependencies’. One area in which this reliance on growth is potentially profound – particularly in the light of aging populations – is pension systems. In this paper, we therefore begin to address...
