May 2023
02May

UK. Capita: Watchdog warns pension funds over data after hack

Hundreds of pension funds have been asked to check whether data was stolen by cybercriminals during a major hack of the UK's largest outsourcer. The Pensions Regulator has asked trustees responsible for funds that use Capita as an administrator to assess whether clients' data is at risk. After the hack in March, information apparently containing Capita data began to circulate on the dark web. The pensions watchdog said on Sunday that it had written to the hundreds of pension funds that employ...

May 2, 2023
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02May

After pan-bashing, France’s Macron faces labour day protests

France's President Emmanuel Macron faces more nationwide protests on Monday as he seeks to steer the country on from a divisive pension law that has sparked anger, pan-bashing and social unrest. Last month he signed a law to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64, despite months of strikes against the bill. He and his government have since tried to turn the page on the episode of popular discontent, one of the biggest challenges to his second mandate. But protesters have...

May 2, 2023
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02May

Nigeria. PenCom steps up efforts at diversifying pension fund investment

The National Pension Commission, PenCom, is stepping up efforts at diversifying investments in pension fund portfolio assets. The Director-General, D-G PenCom, Mrs Aisha Dahir-Umar, gave this hint in the Commission’s 2022 fourth-quarter report. The D-G said the Commission had stepped up efforts at ensuring sustainable investment of pension funds in alternative asset classes, during the quarter under review. According to her, PenCom had also structured infrastructure projects that met the strict requirements of the Pension Fund Investments Regulation. The D-G said “the Commission...

May 2, 2023
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02May

Germany has a plan to tackle a rapidly aging workforce: recruiting robots

A robot takeover has long been the stuff of science fiction, but digitalization could be key in solving Germany’s labor shortage crisis, as its population ages. A record 45.9 million people were employed by Europe’s largest economy in the fourth quarter of 2022, the German Federal Statistical Office found. But, while more people than ever have jobs, over half of German companies reported that they were struggling to find skilled workers to fill vacancies, according to German Chambers of Commerce...

May 2, 2023
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April 2023
28Apr

Bank of England tells insurers to moderate their push into pensions

The Bank of England warned insurers on Thursday not over extend themselves in grabbing more business from pension schemes eager to offload risks. Charlotte Gerken, executive director for insurance supervision at the Bank, said that in the face of considerable temptation to capture business opportunities, insurers need to exercise caution. Bulk purchase annuities (BPA) are long-term policies from life insurers for company defined benefit, or final salary, pension schemes. Rising interest rates have improved funding levels of pension schemes, making them cheaper...

April 28, 2023
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28Apr

Pension funds need to consider beneficiaries’ sustainability preferences more – here’s why the IORP II consultation matters

The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) consultation on the review of the Institutions for Occupational Retirement Provision (IORP) II Directive closes next month, on the 25 May. What’s at stake here is significant – how to take account of preferences to invest sustainably, and how the law, and the overall policy landscape, can improve. EIOPA’s technical consultation features a dedicated sustainability chapter. It suggests that pension funds should integrate members’ and beneficiaries’ sustainability preferences into investment decision-making while complying...

April 28, 2023
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28Apr

US. Closing Pensions For Public Workers Has Proven A Mistake

A measure to close North Dakota's public pension plan is headed to Governor Doug Burgum's desk for signature. Before enacting the measure, the state’s chief executive would be wise to look at the experience of other states that have made such a drastic move. State leaders have learned the hard way that ending pension benefits comes with little to be gained and a big price to pay. More specifically, states that shifted new employees from defined benefit pensions to defined...

April 28, 2023
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28Apr

​Danish FSA develops national stress test for pension firms

The Danish Financial Supervisory Authority (FSA, Finanstilsynet) has developed its own stress test for pension providers, saying it takes certain national conditions into account – unlike the European Supervisory Authority for Insurance and Occupational Pension Schemes (EIOPA) version. The Copenhagen-based financial watchdog announced yesterday that the new stress tests to assess how insurance and pension companies would fare in a severe economic slump were part of its “strategy 2025” to ensure robustness. “EIOPA’s stress test ensures a high market coverage on...

April 28, 2023
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27Apr

US. Aging Population, Higher Life Expectancy Put Pressure on Global Pension Systems

Even though the COVID-19 pandemic caused millions of premature deaths and wiped out nearly a decade of life-expectancy gains, longevity is projected to return to its previous trend and rise to a global average of 77.3 years by 2050 from a global 73.4 years in 2023, data from the 2023 Allianz Pension Report shows. While the American pension system is rated among the best in the world by the Allianz Pension Index, it remains unclear if the U.S. public pension...

April 27, 2023
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27Apr

UK. New TPR guidance places Equality, Diversity and Inclusion at the forefront of the trustee agenda

On 28 March 2023, the Pensions Regulator (TPR) published two sets of equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) guidance: one for governing bodies; and one for employers. In parallel, TPR has published an overview explaining what EDI is, why it is important, and the benefits of improving EDI across the pensions industry. TPR hopes the guidance, which was developed in conjunction with an industry-wide working group which I was pleased to be part of, can be used by pension scheme...

April 27, 2023
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