January 2022
18Jan

Ghana. Lack of Pension plan for informal sector workers puts financial burden on youth and retirees

Workers in the informal sector face a lot of problems as they get older and retire. Many people have hung on to misconceptions and falsehoods about pensions throughout the years. But the failure to set up a pension plan frequently places a financial burden on the children of retirees. Many in the informal sector cringe at the mention of pension or end of service benefits. Seventy-four-year-old Obaapanin Yaa Ampomaah sells yam at Ayigya Market in Kumasi. She has been selling this food stuff...

January 18, 2022
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18Jan

UK. Lack of guidance for pension savers risks freedoms ‘failure’, MPs warn

A Work and Pensions Committee report calls on Government and regulators to play more active role in supporting savers to make better decisions about their money. The Government should commit to trial of automatic Pension Wise guidance appointments and set a target of at least 60% needed to boost uptake of pensions guidance and advice Automatic appointments with the Pension Wise service should be trialled as part of a renewed commitment from the Government to support people to make better decisions...

January 18, 2022
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18Jan

It’s Not ‘Woke’ for Businesses to Think Beyond Profit, BlackRock Chief Says

Laurence D. Fink, the founder and chief executive of the investment giant BlackRock, has become one of the most influential voices in business over the past decade in pushing corporate leaders to think beyond profits, to their social purpose. Read also Canada. ESG challenges: talent shortage and lack of consistent standards Mr. Fink has delivered his words in annual letters that have drawn remarkable attention, but also criticism from all corners: that he is beholden to politically correct antibusiness activists, or...

January 18, 2022
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17Jan

China’s birth rate drops to record low in 2021, population aging

The birth rate in mainland China slipped to a record low in 2021, government data showed Monday, despite efforts by the Chinese government to prevent the country's population from aging further. In China, 10.62 million babies were born in 2021, a rate of 7.52 per 1,000 people, the lowest level since Mao Zedong founded the Communist-led People's Republic of China in 1949. Read also David Sinclair explains what an ageing population means for economies around the world The population aged 65...

January 17, 2022
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17Jan

UK. Expert calls on pension funds to fill fintech growth funding cap

The author of a major review of UK fintech has called on pension funds to back British entrepreneurs and fill a major growth funding gap in the sector just as government reviews whether to relax restrictions on pension fund investment. Ron Kalifa, who masterminded the government-commissioned Kalifa Review of Fintech last year, told City AM that pension funds have an opportunity to help British entrepreneurs grow their business domestically and drive job creation rather than selling at the growth stage. He...

January 17, 2022
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17Jan

Why Women Need to Take a More Active Role in Their Financial Futures

By Stacia Williams Too many women leave decisions about their financial futures to their husbands — and that’s hardly a retirement plan. And because women tend to live longer than men, it’s imperative that they take an active role in plotting out what’s happening with the money that will see them through the latter part of their lives. How to go about that? Any good retirement plan breaks down into five areas: income, investments, taxes, health care and legacy. Retirement income typically...

January 17, 2022
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14Jan

UK. FCA’s SDR intent welcomed; greenwashing fears remain

The Financial Conduct Authority's (FCA) proposals on sustainability disclosure requirements (SDR) have been welcomed by industry experts, although concerns remain over the need for one "harmonised" and understandable system for all investment products. The regulator previously launched a discussion paper seeking views on the proposed SDRs for asset managers and FCA-regulated asset owners, which aim to “empower” pension scheme trustees to consider climate-related factors in their decision making. Industry organisations have welcomed the FCA’s intention behind the proposals, with Interactive Investor...

January 14, 2022
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14Jan

Pensions in Germany: How the new government plans to solve an age-old issue

Germany's ageing population continues to cause uncertainty about the future of the pension system. Here's how the new government is planning to make ends meet. The issues with Germany’s pensions pot are well documented. Thanks to the country’s ageing population, over the next 10-15 years, a huge number of people will go from being tax payers to pension recipients, creating a troubling imbalance between people paying into the system and people drawing money out. It’s a problem that has been plaguing...

January 14, 2022
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Opinion: Do ‘ethical’ pension funds have a private equity problem?
13Jan

Do ‘ethical’ pension funds have a private equity problem?

By Brett Arends The people running public pension plans these days like to boast about their “ethical” investment policies, for example when it comes to the environment or “diversity, equity and inclusion.” Meanwhile they pour billions of dollars into secretive private-equity funds in pursuit of extra profits. Now comes yet more evidence that some of those private-equity managers in turn are using that money for the opposite of ethics. “Private equity ownership leads to an increase of 147% in the percentage of… financial...

January 13, 2022
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12Jan

Wages and pensions fall in Uruguay due to economic policy

Wage drops and pension losses foreshadowed today a 2022 of economic restrictions in Uruguay, according to data provided by representatives of the Social Security Bank (PBS for its acronym in Spanish). The year before closed as the second consecutive year of the current right-wing coalition government, in which the adjustment of the salary of the workers was lower than inflation, which also means that retired people will receive a pension below the level of consumer prices. Ramón Ruiz, director of the...

January 12, 2022
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