November 2025
26Nov

Three in five pension funds threaten to replace asset managers: study

Despite managing US$139bn in global assets set to climb to US$200bn by 2030, asset managers are watching profits disappear. According to PwC's 2025 Global Asset and Wealth Management research, profit as a share of assets under management has already dropped roughly 19 percent since 2018, with projections showing another 9 percent decline by 2030. The crisis is structural, not temporary. According to PwC's analysis of 300 asset managers, institutional investors, and distributors, 89 percent of asset managers report profitability pressure over the...

November 26, 2025
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25Nov

US. Milliman analysis: Public pension funding rises in October to highest level in study history

Milliman, Inc., a premier global consulting and actuarial firm, today released the latest results of its Public Pension Funding Index (PPFI), which analyzes data from the nation’s 100 largest public defined benefit plans. For the seventh straight month, the PPFI funded ratio improved in October, rising from 85.4% as of September 30 to 86.3% as of October 31, surpassing the previous high-water mark of 85.5% set at the end of 2021. Another month of strong investment returns—estimated at 1.0% in...

November 25, 2025
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21Nov

The Aftermath of the Pandemic Retirement Boom

 By Lei Fang, Paul Mohnen & David Lee The labor force participation rate experienced a sharp drop during the pandemic, from which it has yet to fully recover. This shortfall can be attributed to a persistent decline in labor force participation among people aged 55 and older. In this blog post, we show that excess retirements relative to prepandemic and higher population shares of retirement-age individuals have both contributed to the decline in the labor force participation rate of older...

November 21, 2025
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21Nov

CalPERS becomes first US pension to adopt total portfolio approach

The board of California Public Employees’ Retirement System – with a few trepidations – officially approved the transition to its long-anticipated total portfolio approach at a meeting this week, providing staff more discretion in investment decisions. For the past year, CalPERS staff have pitched the TPA model as offering added flexibility and an opportunity to focus on investments that can best contribute to performance, instead of those that best fit pre-set allocation targets for asset classes. Stephen Gilmore, the system’s CIO,...

November 21, 2025
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19Nov

IRS Releases Updated Retirement Plan Annual Limits and Includes Unexpected Increase

The IRS released the cost-of-living adjustments for qualified defined contribution plans for the 2026 tax year (IRS Notice 2025-67). The following chart summarizes the key increases applicable to defined contribution plans for 2026: 2026 2025 Defined contribution plan limit $72,000 $70,000 Elective deferral limit (401(k), 403(b), and 457(b)) $24,500 $23,500 Catch-up contributions (Age 50+) $8,000 $7,500 Super catch contributions (age 60-63) $11,250 $11,250 Roth catch-up wage threshold for 2025 $150,000 Annual compensation limit $360,000 $350,000 Unexpected by many employers, the IRS changed the Roth catch-up contribution FICA wage threshold for 2025 (used to determine the limited status for 2026) from...

November 19, 2025
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18Nov

The Offshoring of America’s Retirement Savings

Private equity firms and other alternative asset managers — including Ares Management Corp., Blackstone Inc., Brookfield Corp. and KKR & Co. — are reshaping the once-staid world of life insurance. Over the past decade, they’ve bought, built or partnered with insurers that sell policies and annuities, collectively commanding hundreds of billions of dollars. In a previous era, life insurers parked their money in the safest corners of the market — mostly high-grade bonds and big-name stocks. But as Wall Street...

November 18, 2025
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14Nov

Public Pensions and Private Savings

By Esteban García-Miralles & Jonathan M. Leganza How does the provision of public pension benefits impact private savings? We answer this question in the context of a Danish reform that increased social security eligibility ages. Using administrative data and a regression discontinuity design, we identify the causal effects of the policy on savings throughout the financial portfolio. We find increases in contributions to personal and employer-sponsored retirement accounts when delayed benefit eligibility induces extended employment. We argue that inertia—the continuation...

November 14, 2025
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13Nov

Vanguard Introduces How America Retires, Analyzing America’s Retirement Revolution

Vanguard introduces the inaugural How America Retires report, a companion to How America Saves, that analyzes Vanguard retirement plan data and industry trends, uncovering insights into the behaviors, decisions, and challenges faced by Americans in retirement. As defined contribution (DC) plans continue to dominate the retirement landscape, How America Retires explores income-generation strategies in retirement and the critical role 401(k) plan design plays in shaping retiree outcomes. With more than four million Americans turning 65 this year1 and significant progress...

November 13, 2025
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13Nov

How America Retires: Turning complexity into clarity

By Vanguard This year, roughly 4.2 million people will turn age 65.* These individuals, collectively the so-called silver tsunami, are preparing to leave working life behind and enter a fulfilling and rewarding retirement. That’s exactly why we’ve created How America Retires, Vanguard’s new report that spotlights behavioral trends, insights, and plan design best practices to help today’s retirees make the life-changing transition from saving their money to spending it. Get the report here

November 13, 2025
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12Nov

Trans troops sue United States Air Force over revoked pensions after 15–18 years of service

A group of trans veterans, lead by Master Sergeant Logan Ireland, 37, (pictured) is suing the United States Air Force after being stripped of retirement benefits they say were promised to them following years of honourable service. The lawsuit, filed on 10 November in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, involves 17 former Air Force and Space Force members who each served between 15 and 18 years. Under the Temporary Early Retirement Authority (TERA), they were initially granted early retirement in June, only for the Air Force to...

November 12, 2025
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