November 2025
14Nov

Italy, France and Belgium carry most worrying debts in EU, top bank says

Italy, France and Belgium have the most concerning debt-sustainability outlooks in the EU, according to the latest study published by the National Bank of Belgium. The analysis published today found that Italy, France and Belgium are the most fragile economies in Europe when it comes to government debt. They already carry some of the heaviest debt loads in the European Union, and their problems are made worse by rapid population ageing and rising pension costs. Koen De Leus, chief economist at BNP...

November 14, 2025
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12Nov

The role of insurers helping create sustainable pension systems

Ensuring a sustainable income in retirement is an enduringly knotty problem and one that continues to preoccupy national pension systems and their asset manager partners the world over. At the Fiduciary Investors Symposium Oxford, panellists explored how different countries are innovating to ensure their pension systems’ sustainability. Like NEST, the UK’s biggest defined contribution (DC) master trust, which plans to enter the bulk annuity market as part of a new, post-retirement solution and is about to partner with an insurance...

November 12, 2025
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04Nov

Solving for retirement: All paths lead to more private savings

The biggest challenge and opportunity for superannuation, pension and sovereign wealth funds is the climbing support ratio, particularly in developed economies, according to Michael Davis, head of global retirement strategy at T. Rowe Price. The support ratio, sometimes referred to in less flattering terms as the old-age dependency ratio, has been in rising across every major global economy. For example, in Japan, the support ratio is 51, meaning 100 working adults support 51 retirees. In the 1950s, the ratio was...

November 4, 2025
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October 2025
16Oct

Why Europe can’t face its pension black hole

France's political standoff shows how European governments, caught between the demands of their ageing electorates and the need to keep spending in check, keep struggling to fix the pension-shaped holes in their budgets. The right to a pension has been a central plank of the European social contract for decades. But longer life spans and fewer births mean most governments can't afford to have people retiring on a full pension in their early 60s, as was once the norm. The Week...

October 16, 2025
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September 2025
08Sep

Mexico’s Politics Of Pensions

Like many countries with an aging population, Mexico is facing a pension crisis. In just the last five years, the universal pension for older adults quadrupled its budget. Coupled with low growth, the ever-rising cash transfers and subsidies have become a major drag on the country’s economy. Welfare payments to individuals—such as the universal pension for older adults, disability pensions, and student stipends—have grown at a pace that outstripped investment in infrastructure, education, and security. These programs are politically attractive:...

September 8, 2025
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01Sep

Global depopulation amidst gains in average longevity

A United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA) report titled “World Fertility 2024” shows a gradual decrease in global fertility. It says the global fertility rate in 2024 was 2.2 births per woman on average, down from about 5 in the 1960s, and 3.3 in 1990. It is projected to continue declining, reaching the replacement level of 2.1 in 2050, and falling further to 1.8 births per woman in 2100. “Trends in fertility, together with trends in...

September 1, 2025
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August 2025
29Aug

Other nations mandate retirement savings — the U.S. does not. Here’s why it matters

Retirement funding looks very different depending on where you live. While the United States leans heavily on voluntary 401(k)-style savings plans, other nations rely on mandatory contributions or more traditional pensions to ensure broad coverage and steady income. Mercer CFA Institute Global Pension Index takes these structural differences into consideration when ranking some of the world’s biggest retirement systems. “We do it because we want to give a picture of the retirement landscape,” said Christine Mahoney, global pensions leader at Mercer, a consulting firm. “We try...

August 29, 2025
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26Aug

Aging population pressures China’s pension system.

China's rapidly aging population puts pressure on the pension system that needs to be addressed China, a major developing country with a large population, is undergoing exceptionally rapid demographic aging. The most urgent priority for China's pension finance sector is to tackle aging-related challenges and enhance the sustainability of the pension system, which has transitioned from a pay-as-you-go model to a hybrid structure that combines social pooling with individually funded accounts. The sector currently confronts several major challenges. Foremost is the uneven...

August 26, 2025
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22Aug

Reforming the Pension System in Nepal: Sustainability, Adequacy, and Coverage

By Dilip Raj Paudel Pension systems ensure financial security during retirement, especially in developing countries like Nepal. The sustainability, adequacy, and coverage of pension systems are critical for ensuring social security after retirement, particularly in developing countries like Nepal. This study provides a comprehensive analysis of Nepal's pension framework, examining contributory and non-contributory schemes to identify their strengths, limitations, and areas for reform. Utilizing a mixed-method approach, primary data from 384 respondents and secondary sources, including reports from international organizations,...

August 22, 2025
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12Aug

China’s pension system needs an overhaul because it is neither fair nor sustainable

By Zhou Xin Mainland China’s pension system has again become an issue of debate after the Supreme People’s Court ruled that any private agreement between employers and employees to evade payment of retirement funds was invalid. While the legal interpretation reiterated existing laws and regulations, it struck a nerve with the population and triggered doubts about the pension system’s fairness and sustainability. China’s pay-as-you-go system, which requires workers to contribute funds into a state-managed pool to pay for their retirement, essentially serves as a...

August 12, 2025
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