December 2022
07Dec

UK. More than 8.6mn missing out on workplace pension savings

More than 8.6mn people from “underpensioned” groups are missing out on workplace pension savings, according to a report by Now Pensions. The report, published on December 7 in collaboration with the Pensions Policy Institute, found a number of common factors within these groups that are causing barriers to saving, including non-traditional work patterns, a lower percentage of homeownership, and being impacted by inequalities in the labour market. People from underpensioned groups – including ethnic minorities, people with disabilities, carers and single...

December 7, 2022
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06Dec

Big Finance Has a Sustainability Problem. These Brands Have Solutions

The Co-Operative Bank and Make My Money Matter want to show consumers the power of their money The first question David Hayman asks new people he meets is if they know where their pension money is held. Most say they don’t. If you’re reading this in the U.K., you might be surprised to learn that yours is most likely invested in fossil fuels, tobacco or arms. In the U.S., just 14 public pension funds inject $82 billion each year into...

December 6, 2022
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05Dec

British government looks at pension rules to retain health workers

Britain's government is launching a consultation into how to amend pension rules for workers in the National Health Service to help retain more staff, at a time when the sector faces strikes over pay this month that could halt some procedures. The governing Conservative Party has long promised to sort out a health service which has struggled to recover after being stretched to its limits during the COVID-19 pandemic and now faces strikes by thousands of nurses and ambulance workers. "The...

December 5, 2022
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02Dec

UK. FCA bans third-party dashboard consumer charges

The Financial Conduct Authority will prohibit third parties from charging customers for services linked to pension dashboards as part of its regulatory framework for the initiative. According to its new consultation - published on December 1, on the same day that the Pensions Dashboards Programme issued its own consultation into design standards - the FCA recognised that some dashboard providers will look to third-party agreements for areas including licensing or third-party hosting. Any agreement with a third party, however, must allow...

December 2, 2022
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November 2022
30Nov

UK. Sustainability in pension scheme strategies improve but still room for improvement on disclosures, XPS Pensions Group analysis finds

The pensions consultancy reviewed climate disclosures of 12 large pension schemes with £320bn in assets under management, made in line with TCFD guidance These are the first round of such disclosures to be published after doing so was made mandatory for schemes with over £5bn, in October 2021. The review found that 11 of the 12 schemes reviewed have targets in place linked to Net Zero or Paris Agreement Alignment, with the majority of these committing to meet that standard...

November 30, 2022
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29Nov

UK. FCA reveals £49m redress scheme for British Steel pensions

Financial advisers to pay about £45,000 a worker to 1,000 staff who received unsuitable advice More than 1,000 former members of the British Steel pension scheme who received unsuitable advice from financial advisers accused of “enriching” themselves will receive an average payout of £45,000 in compensation. The City watchdog on Monday launched plans for a scheme that seeks to compensate those who had not yet received redress after being given poor pension transfer advice when British Steel fell into financial hardship. The...

November 29, 2022
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28Nov

U.K. Pension savers ‘lost £1.7 billion on retirement transition

New research from HSBC Tomorrow Master Trust shows workplace pension scheme members are losing around £1.7 billion a year during their transition into and in retirement, due to savers choosing costly pathways to access their money. While some of this loss comes from scheme members withdrawing more than the 25% tax-free lump sum, exposing them to hefty tax penalties, many are potentially buying products that are not the optimal solution for their circumstances. The research was commissioned for a report Converting...

November 28, 2022
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25Nov

UK. MPs told ‘illegal’ LDIs fanned gilt crisis

The flames of the crisis in the gilt market following the Mini Budget were fanned by widely used liability driven investments (LDIs) that were “almost certainly illegal”, MPs were told yesterday. At a hearing in front of the Work and Pensions Select Committee, experts criticised LDIs for being highly leveraged, causing "carnage" for some pension schemes, and blamed regulators for not acting previously. Bond market veteran Dr Con Keating, now head of research at the specialist insurer Brighton Rock Group, said...

November 25, 2022
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24Nov

More than 70,000 UK university staff go on strike over pay and pensions

Up to 2.5 million students could face disruption as tens of thousands of university staff begin industrial action on Thursday in what has been billed as the biggest strike in the history of UK higher education. More than 70,000 staff, including lecturers, librarians and researchers, are due to take part in the first of three days of strike action over pay, working conditions and pensions, with pickets expected at 150 universities. Read also UK. MPs told ‘illegal’ LDIs fanned gilt crisis The...

November 24, 2022
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24Nov

UK. Millennials risk losing nearly £6,600 by pausing pension contributions

People pausing their pension contributions in their 20s and 30s could stand to lose almost £6,600 by the time they reach retirement age, analysis from Money Minder has revealed. The research found that those in their 20s that paused pension payments for a year could have an additional £1,371, they risked losing up to £5,770 from their total pension fund when they reach state pension age, due to the accumulation of the investment returns contributing to the growth of the...

November 24, 2022
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