February 2019

15Feb

UK expats in EU could face frozen pensions

Brits across the EU could lose their special status and have their state pensions frozen if an agreement is not reached between the EU and UK ahead of the 29 March. Currently, people living in countries that do not have reciprocal agreements with the UK, or don’t have legal requirements for expat pensions, will not receive yearly increases (uprates) in their state pension. There are currently around 510,000 people receiving this payment abroad, with 84% of them having retired...

February 15, 2019
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13Feb

UK. ‘Fraudster families’ target pension savers

Organised crime groups led by married couples or families are running pension scams worth millions of pounds. The ‘fraudster families’ often hire rogue financial experts to run the large-scale scams on their behalf. Victims of these scams lost an average of £91,000 each to fraudsters in 2017 but some people have lost much more. They reported receiving cold-calls, offers of free pension reviews and promises that they would get high rates of return – which are all key warning...

February 13, 2019
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12Feb

Are businesses matching green efforts with climate-safe staff pensions?

Only a small number of FTSE 100 firms' pension schemes have shifted their investment approach to take account of climate-related risks, ShareAction research finds The retirement savings of hundreds of thousands of workers could be "highly exposed" to climate-related risks, with some of the UK's biggest company pension schemes sticking with investment strategies that fail to address exposure to carbon intensive assets. That is the key conclusion from research by ShareAction published today which warns companies are failing to...

February 12, 2019
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12Feb

United Kingdom: PS pension study postponed

A decision by the UK Government to delay part of its work on the valuation of Public Service pensions has sparked an angry response from unions. Critics of the move say it is simply a stalling measure to deny improvements to members’ benefits. Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Liz Truss (pictured) told Parliament that a December judgement from the Court of Appeal on “transactional protection” offered to some scheme members could have a £4 billion (A$7.1 billion) a year...

February 12, 2019
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11Feb

UK. Seven years in jail for bosses who recklessly risk pensions

Devil-may-care directors who recklessly put workers’ pensions at risk will face up to 7 years in prison or unlimited fines. A new criminal offence of ‘wilful or reckless behaviour’ in relation to pensions will be introduced under the proposals to crack down on abuse of final or average salary schemes. Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Amber Rudd, said: The vast majority of bosses take their responsibilities seriously and look after their workers’ retirement funds. However, for too...

February 11, 2019
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06Feb

UK. Pension billions could be unlocked to boost economic growth and savers’ returns

Billions of pounds of investment could be unlocked by pension schemes to fund start-up companies and infrastructure projects, boosting Britain’s economy and savers’ returns, under proposals unveiled by the government on February 5. Members of occupational defined contribution (DC) pension schemes may be missing out on potential benefits of long-term investments in ventures such as small firms, housing, green energy and sustainable development, according to the Minister for Pensions. Assets in occupational DC schemes have almost tripled to £60 billion since the start...

February 6, 2019
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05Feb

UK. Self-invested personal pensions (SIPP) complaints up 37% on last year

The number of new self-invested personal pension (Sipp) cases investigated by the Financial Ombudsman Service in the first three quarters of this year has already exceeded the number received in the whole of the 2017/18 financial year.The latest set of quarterly data published by the ombudsman today (February 5), showed the number of new Sipp cases had reached 2802 in the nine months between April and December 2018.This was a 37 per cent jump from the 2051 cases received in...

February 5, 2019
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January 2019

31Jan

UK. PensionBee chooses Onfido to deliver frictionless KYC compliance

Leading identity verification provider Onfido today announces that it has partnered with PensionBee. Onfido’s machine learning-based identity verification technology allows PensionBee to streamline KYC processes, reducing manual overheads and bringing new users onboard. PensionBee helps users take control of their finances by consolidating all their old pension pots into one PensionBee plan. Government estimates place the value of unconsolidated pensions at £750bn in the next 3 years as pension-holders disengage with overly complex plans and processes. PensionBee aims to...

January 31, 2019
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30Jan

UK. Pension funds to up investment in smaller firms, consultant says

Jump in interest reverses a long-term trend where big investors gravitated towards the world’s largest companies Pension funds’ appetite for high-risk, high-return investments in smaller companies has surged in the past year, according to one consultancy — offering a piece of good news for beleaguered stock-pickers. The jump in interest reverses a long-term trend, according to bfinance, the investment consultancy. Big investors have gravitated towards portfolios of the world’s largest companies, often held through index trackers Read more @fn...

January 30, 2019
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29Jan

UK. FCA outlines investment rules for retirement funds

New rules aim to encourage savers not to leave their pots languishing in low-return cash funds Companies managing money in the UK’s £384bn market for post-retirement funds will face strict new rules governing their investments, regulators confirmed on January 28. The rules, which follow on from plans first announced in June last year, are aimed at consumers who pass retirement and leave all their savings in cash. The Financial Conduct Authority, the UK’s financial watchdog, is worried about consumers...

January 29, 2019
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