February 2021
19Feb

Underfunded and Under Pressure, U.S. Pensions to Keep Investing in China

U.S. state pension funds that invested in Ant Group Co. were stung when the financial technology firm’s initial public offering was suddenly pulled on orders of China’s president. But few of these investors are swearing off Chinese private markets, where they still hope to reap big returns. Read also US Corporate Pension Funded Ratio Climbs to 89.8% in January Shock waves rippled through the investment world when China halted the initial public offering of Ant, which would have been the world’s...

February 19, 2021
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18Feb

US Corporate Pension Funded Ratio Climbs to 89.8% in January

The funded ratio of the 100 largest corporate defined benefit (DB) pension plans improved to 89.8% at the end of January from 88.1% at the end of December as their aggregate deficit fell below $200 billion for the first time in more than a year, according to consulting firm Milliman. With the help of a 16 basis point (bp) increase in the monthly discount rate to 2.62% from 2.46%, the plans’ funding improved by $39 billion in January as their...

February 18, 2021
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17Feb

US. To Plug a Pension Gap, This City Rented Its Streets. To Itself.

The City of Tucson, Ariz., decided last year to pay rent on five golf courses and a zoo — to itself. In California, West Covina agreed to pay rent on its own streets. And in Flagstaff, Ariz., a new lease agreement covers libraries, fire stations and even City Hall. They are risky financial arrangements born of desperation, adopted to fulfill ballooning pension payments that the cities can no longer afford. Starved of cash by the pandemic, cities are essentially using...

February 17, 2021
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16Feb

Does financial wellness education increase retirement plan participation?

Any good advisor knows, a successful retirement plan requires more than a robust investment menu. Plan participation is essential, but also one of the biggest challenges. Financial wellness education can increase participation, bolstering plan participants’ chances of a successful, on-time retirement. In turn, this helps plan sponsors by reducing costs associated with retirement-age employees. With American adults experiencing increased financial stress during the pandemic, plan sponsors and participants are especially interested in financial wellness benefits that can help reduce financial stress...

February 16, 2021
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15Feb

U.S. Signals Policy Shift on California State Retirement-Savings Program

Signaling a shift in retirement policy, the U.S. Labor Department has dropped its support for a lawsuit that seeks to invalidate a California state retirement-savings program for people who lack access to 401(k) plans at work. In a notice filed in a federal appeals court on Feb. 5, the agency said because of the change in administration, it “no longer wishes to participate” in the case and “does not support either side.” The reversal “isn’t surprising,” said John Scott, director of...

February 15, 2021
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12Feb

US. House Includes Pension Reform Plan in COVID-19 Relief Bill

The House Ways and Means Committee has included a pension reform provision in a COVID-19 relief bill that would create a special financial assistance program to help multiemployer pension plans and extend amortization periods for single-employer plans. Read also US. AIG to pay New York $12M for unlicensed pension risk transfer business The Butch Lewis Emergency Pension Plan Relief Act of 2021, which is included in the bill, would create a special financial assistance program under which cash payments would be...

February 12, 2021
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09Feb

Counter-Hegemonic Finance: The Gamestop Short Squeeze

By Usman W. Chohan The events that surrounded the short squeeze of various downtrodden stocks such as Gamestop (GME) allude to a counter-hegemonic financial effort, with small-scale investors pooling in to sabotage the short-positions of large Wall Street players such as hedge funds. This paper frames these events in terms of public reprisal for the 2008 Global Financial Crisis (GFC) and public contempt for insular financial private interest. The discussion suggests that such people-power initiatives, abetted by powerful elite...

February 9, 2021
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09Feb

Gana fuerza en el Congreso una propuesta para que el Gobierno abra una cuenta con $1,000 a todos los recién nacidos y la vaya enriqueciendo

Un proyecto de ley impulsado por el demócrata Cory Brooker en el Senado y la demócrata Ayanna Pressley en la Cámara de Representantes propone que el Gobierno federal cree una cuenta de ahorros con 1,000 dólares para toda persona que nazca en Estados Unidos. Los llamados baby bonds buscan disminuir la desigualdad económica y racial, y están ganando apoyo entre la mayoría demócrata en ambas cámaras del Congreso. Dependiendo de los ingresos de la familia, el Gobierno añadiría...

February 9, 2021
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09Feb

US. AIG to pay New York $12M for unlicensed pension risk transfer business

American International Group (AIG), the multinational finance and insurance corporation, owes the state of New York $12 million in penalties for insurance law violations stemming from its pension risk transfer (PRT) business. Deutsche Bank to pay $150M penalty for suspicious handling of Epstein accounts Linda A. Lacewell, Superintendent of New York’s Department of Financial Services (DFS), announced the penalty on Monday. She said an investigation from her department revealed that a subsidiary of AIG solicited and did insurance business in New...

February 9, 2021
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09Feb

US. Insurers Have Been Draining Funds from New Jersey’s Pensions for 15 Years

Insurance firms have been siphoning off money from New Jersey’s pension funds for the past 15 years thanks to a policy decision that shifted financial obligations for employee injuries to pension funds, according to an investigation by acting state Comptroller Kevin Walsh. A report on the investigation said that a 2006 policy adopted by the Division of Workers’ Compensation (DWC) encourages injured employees to accept continuing medical monitoring and coverage instead of cash settlements. The report said the approach, which...

February 9, 2021
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