January 2021

28Jan

UK pension schemes face new climate risk reporting rules

The UK’s largest workplace pension schemes must comply with new mandatory requirements to take action on climate change under government measures that will also pile pressure on the fund management industry. Read also UK. Pension Minister Urges Treasury For Retirement Changes But The Self-Employed May Miss Out | Personal Finance | Finance From October, trustees of pension plans with more than £5bn in assets will have a legal duty to report on the financial risks of climate change within their...

January 28, 2021
News, Slider, , ,
Read more...
25Jan

UK. FCA publishes latest data on the defined benefit transfer market

The FCA has published its latest data on the defined benefit (DB) transfers market, covering October 2018 to March 2020. It has noted that there are “signs of improvement” in respect of DB transfer advice; in particular, there has been a significant reduction in conversion rates. This indicates that firms are starting to act more in line with the FCA’s expectations, as advice to transfer out of a DB scheme will not usually be in the client’s best interests....

January 25, 2021
News, Slider, ,
Read more...
21Jan

UK. Pension bill passes last hurdle

The Pension Schemes Bill is to receive Royal Assent and become law imminently after being approved by the House of Lords in the final stage of its parliamentary journey. The bill managed to avoid a round of parliamentary ping pong after peers accepted the House of Commons amendments in a hearing yesterday (January 19). Also Read: Thousands of UK savers advised to give up final-salary pensions It was reintroduced to the House of Lords at the beginning of last year...

January 21, 2021
News, Slider, ,
Read more...
21Jan

PensionBee Introduces Pension for the Self-Employed

Online pension provider PensionBee has unveiled a new product catering for the self-employed, as research reveals only 24 per cent currently have a pension. Recent analysis from the Institute for Fiscal Studies shows that the number of self-employed workers has grown rapidly over the past two decades, yet the proportion saving into a private pension has fallen dramatically. Numbers stood at 48 per cent in 1998 but have fallen to just 16 per cent in 2018. Nearly 80 per...

January 21, 2021
News, Slider, ,
Read more...
19Jan

Thousands of UK savers advised to give up final-salary pensions

Tens of thousands of savers were recommended to give up valuable final-salary pensions by advisers using a popular charging model now banned owing to concerns it was fuelling mis-selling, according to data published by the regulator. Last October advisers were barred from providing defined benefit pension transfer advice using the contingent fee model, where they were only paid if the client decided to go ahead with a transfer recommendation. The Financial Conduct Authority acted after becoming concerned the contingent...

January 19, 2021
News, Slider, ,
Read more...
19Jan

UK. Cushon unveils net-zero pension plan

Cushon, the fintech workplace savings disrupter, today announces that it has launched the world’s first net zero pension. Cushon’s pension is the first of its kind in that it is Net Zero now - not later - unlike competitors in the market who have long-reaching targets to achieve the same by 2030 or even 2050. The fund will have a management fee of just 0.15%, while offering highly competitive returns without sacrificing performance. Cushon’s Net Zero pension will enable...

January 19, 2021
News, Slider, , ,
Read more...
15Jan

UK Asset Owners and Managers to Form Sustainability Alliance

How can pension plans and financial managers boost sustainable investing? By forming a group to do so. Read also U.K. government cuts administration fees for smallest DC pots British asset owners and managers are forging an alliance with that in mind. It’s in response to greater calls from regulators in the country to further the fight against climate change and promote other societal goals. Read also U.K. corporate funds finish 2020 with increased deficits The steering group that convened this week...

January 15, 2021
News, Slider, , ,
Read more...
14Jan

U.K. government cuts administration fees for smallest DC pots

U.K. defined contribution plans with £100 ($136) in assets or less will be exempt from paying administration fees, the government said Wednesday. A consultation into fee cap rules aimed at protecting automatically enrolled plan participants from paying high fees resulted in the government keeping the fee cap at its current level set at 0.75% of assets under management and administration. The consultation was launched in June. However, due to additional concerns raised by respondents to the consultation around the...

January 14, 2021
News, Slider, ,
Read more...
14Jan

UK. Retirees at risk of draining pension pots dry

Three-quarters of pensioners could run out of cash with a decade of retirement left. Older savers risk running out of money and being forced to rely on just the state pension during the last 10 years of their life, according to a study. Nearly six years on from the introduction of pension freedoms rules that gave savers more independence over how they take their retirement pots, research by pension provider The People’s Pension suggests some people are spending their...

January 14, 2021
News, Slider, ,
Read more...
13Jan

U.K. corporate funds finish 2020 with increased deficits

The total deficit of U.K. defined benefit funds covered by the Pension Protection Fund's 7800 index increased 9.6% in December, to £86.4 billion ($117.3 billion). The deficit was £78.8 billion at the end of November. Deficits also worsened for the year ended Dec. 31, from £10.9 billion, said an update Tuesday by the London-based PPF. The PPF is the lifeboat fund for the defined benefit plans of insolvent U.K. companies. The funding ratio of the corporate pension plans worsened...

January 13, 2021
News, Slider, , , , ,
Read more...