October 2017

10Oct

Global Funds Eye Australia’s $1.8 Trillion Pension Pool

More global fund managers are setting up shop in Australia, drawn to the nation’s A$2.3 trillion ($1.8 trillion) pension savings pool and new local investment opportunities. THL Credit Inc., an alternative credit manager based in Boston, said in September that it hired a director in Australia. New York-based credit hedge fund GoldenTree Asset Management opened an office in Sydney last month after appointing a local managing director. Oaktree Capital Management, which already manages Australian pension money, headed Down Under last...

October 10, 2017
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10Oct

Nigeria. Contributory Pensions Scheme Vs Pension Reform Act 2014 Amendment: A Preamble

It is clear from the One-Day public hearing on the multiple bills to amend the Pension Reform Act 2014 at the House of Representatives in Abuja on Thursday 28 September, that important stakeholders in the pensions sector, namely, the Nigeria Police Force, Nigeria Labour Congress, Trade Union Congress, Central Bank of Nigeria, Nigeria Employees Consultative Association, Securities and Exchange commission, National Pension Commission, Nigerian Union of Pensioners and Pension Funds Operators Association of Nigeria, among others, have decided to...

October 10, 2017
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10Oct

Why the average retirement age is rising

About half of today’s working-age households will not be able to maintain their standard of living in retirement. Social Security will provide less relative to pre-retirement earnings; 401(k) balances are meager; and half the private sector workforce does not have an employer-sponsored plan. At the same time, with rising life expectancy the number of years spent in retirement has increased dramatically, health care costs are high and rapidly rising, and interest rates are at historic lows. Retirees are in trouble. Three...

October 10, 2017
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10Oct

Here’s How Much the Average 40-Something American Has Saved for Retirement

By the time you reach your 40s, there's a good chance you'll have had about 20 years of working experience under your belt. And that means you should, ideally, be in a decent place as far as your retirement savings go. Unfortunately, a large number of American 40-somethings are already behind on building their nest eggs. They need to start catching up immediately. Among U.S. households headed by someone aged 44 to 49, the average retirement savings balance is $81,347,...

October 10, 2017
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09Oct

Nobel in Economics Is Awarded to Richard Thaler

Richard H. Thaler was awarded the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Science on Monday for incorporating a more realistic understanding of human behavior into economic theory, and for using the resulting insights to improve public policy. Professor Thaler, an economist at the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business, is a pioneer of the discipline known as behavioral economics, which marries the work of psychologists with that of economists to produce better models of human decision-making. The Nobel committee, announcing the...

October 9, 2017
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09Oct

Saving the Next Billion from Old Age Poverty. Global Lessons for Local Action

This Book Project is the first of a series of initiatives by pinBox to jumpstart a global dialogue and collaborative action on pension inclusion across Asia, Africa and Latin America. The Book presents the policy outlook, past efforts and planned interventions by several developing countries as well as thematic chapters on the key principles and issues in design and implementation of inclusive pension arrangements. This book was realeased on October 12 on the pinBox Digital Micro-Pension Inclusion Roundtable 2017 For more information...

October 9, 2017
Adequacy, Aging, Articles, Books, Corporate Governance, Funding, Investing, Labor Market, Management, News, Pension design, Regulation, Savings, Slider, Supervision, System Sustainability
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09Oct

UK. Thousands of families and pensioners at risk of repossession as government scraps crucial mortgage benefit

Thousands of pensioners face potentially losing government help with mortgage payments when the system changes in six months time, an insurance firm has warned. People are being left in the dark over key changes to Support for Mortgage Interest (SMI) due to come into effect in 2018, Royal London claimed. The SMI is currently paid as a benefit direct to a lender to cover interest payments on mortgages, but from April this is replaced by a loan that the firm...

October 9, 2017
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09Oct

US. Ballot measure would strip pensions from corrupt lawmakers

For years, New York lawmakers convicted of abusing their power and sent off to prison had at least one thing to look forward to: a generous state pension. That practice could come to an end in November when voters will be asked whether to change the state constitution to authorize judges to strip pensions from corrupt politicians. Top lawmakers and Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo have argued the change will act as a powerful deterrent in a state where 30 state...

October 9, 2017
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09Oct

South Africa’s Fedusa wants to review PIC investments

South African labour federation Fedusa said on Saturday it would consult rival federations over withdrawing an investment mandate the workers’ pension fund has with one of the continent’s largest asset managers, the Public Investment Corporation (PIC). The PIC manages South African government employee retirement funds and has been in the spotlight recently after reports the finance ministry requested money from the pension fund to bail out struggling state firms. Finance Minister Malusi Gigaba has denied making such a request. Gigaba on...

October 9, 2017
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09Oct

Spain. Blocked reforms

he Spanish economy has two very serious problems: signing of a wage agreement, which allows recovery of some of purchasing power in medium term, and a solution to reform pension system. Social agents (businessmen and trade unions) have shown a frustrating inability to reach a wage pact in 2017; It would be very dangerous for economic and social stability that agreement would also fail for 2018, because wage-earning policy cannot remain dissociated from reactivation. The recent agreement in Balearic...

October 9, 2017
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