August 2026

UK. Logged in, checked out: The user experience problem pensions won’t face

The average pension app is a decade behind the average banking app. Until that changes, engagement is structurally impossible, argues PensionPay’s Archie Pritchett. Open a workplace pension app on a Monday morning – if you even have one – and in 30 seconds you can see a balance updated several weeks ago, a projection figure with no explanation attached, and a ‘change contributions’ page that ends with the words “please contact your employer”. Open a banking app, and in 30 seconds...

July 2026

2026 Read on Retirement: A new era of retirement

By Black Rock When we look at confidence, we see savers who feel better about retirement than they have in years. But beneath that optimism, retirement income expectations and savings behavior tell a different story. And that gap is not experienced equally. Retirement challenges increasingly vary by generation and gender— revealing a retirement system that is becoming more individualized. Workplace savers increasingly know what they need to do, but competing financial priorities are making it harder to act. The challenge is less...

Transductive infrastructure: The role of ICTs in the UK and EU’s policy initiatives on financial literacy

By Jing Wang & Jiuheng He Information and communication technologies (ICTs) have become central to public-facing policy programs, yet they remain undertheorized, only treated as either instruments or objects of such policies. This paper argues that ICTs in such programs operate as transductive infrastructures, a delivery chain not only transmitting policy information but also defining the intentions and consequences of the stakeholders. Through a comparative analysis of three recent financial literacy initiatives: the UK's Money and Pensions Service, the European...

June 2026

Insights and Analysis: The AI Revolution

By Pension Trusts Enhanced Data Management and Predictive Analytics Central to the operations of DB pensions is the handling of extensive and diverse data sets. AI can significantly improve the way data is managed through advanced data processing abilities. With machine learning algorithms, there's the potential to dissect decades of pension data. This could help identify underlying trends, enhance the valuation of long-term liabilities and fine-tune outcomes. Conventional actuarial models in Asset Liability Management (ALM) are based on time-tested statistical methods. While...

AI in pensions raises governance challenge for trustees: Cartwright

Artificial intelligence used across pension schemes is creating a governance challenge rather than a new regulatory risk, according to Cartwright Pension Trusts. Cartwright said trustees should focus on oversight, accountability and existing governance frameworks as AI becomes more widely used across scheme operations. It said trustees remain responsible for decisions and member outcomes, whether services are delivered by people or AI tools and should incorporate AI considerations into existing governance, risk management, supplier oversight and information security frameworks. According to Cartwright,...

South Korea. Robotics ETFs Draw 3 Trillion Won as ‘100-Year Growth’ Sector Rises

“Pension investors, just memorize this. These are the ETFs that will make you smile in the end if you consistently accumulate them: U.S. representative index ETFs, robotics and automation ETFs, and monthly dividend ETFs. Most pension investments end within these categories.” This is the investment advice gaining attention in pre-retiree communities these days. The so-called “pension trio” strategy positions U.S. representative index ETFs as a solid foundation, supplemented by robotics ETFs targeting growth potential and monthly dividend ETFs that provide...

May 2026

Korea pension giant NPS bolsters operating system to manage risk amid market volatility

Korea’s National Pension Service (NPS) is strengthening its operating system to better manage portfolio risk amid uncertainty in global markets, according to Won Joo Seo, executive fund director and chief investment officer of the pension giant. He said that even though the pension fund achieved a “good” record  18.82% investment return last year, it remains vigilant over rising volatility in Korean and international markets. “Global market uncertainty and transformation are becoming more complex and structural. Competition among countries in security, industrial policy...

Pension Fund Investment and Firm Innovation

By Cédric Schneider, Dario Pozzoli & David Pinkus We use a unique database on domestic pension fund investment to analyze the relationship between pension fund investment and innovation within Danish firms. We find a significant positive association between pension fund investment and various measures of innovation, including green technologies for climate change mitigation and adaptation. However, this relationship is much weaker in highly competitive industries,suggesting that pension funds encourage innovation by monitoring and holding managers accountable. Our analysis also shows...

April 2026

UK. Four in five adults unaware of pensions dashboard

Four in five UK adults remain unaware of pensions dashboards, despite the approaching connection deadline and growing expectations that the tool will play a key role in retirement planning, research from KPMG UK has revealed. The study found that 80 per cent of UK adults have not heard of the pensions dashboard, with awareness particularly low among those closest to retirement. Among those aged 55–64, 81 per cent were unaware of the initiative, rising to 87 per cent among those aged...

UK. Pensions dashboards are schemes ready for the next step

TPR dashboards lead Lucy Stone emphasises that connection is just the start of the dashboards journey, urging schemes to keep up the momentum, focus on value data and embrace the opportunities to learn from user testing. We are edging ever closer to people being able to see all their pensions online at a time of their choosing, revolutionising how they plan for retirement. With the deadline for connection less than six months away, three quarters of all records are...