August 2017

29Aug

US. Pensions May Yank Up to $1 Trillion From Stocks to Trim Risk

Pension funds are poised to shift as much as $1 trillion from stocks to bonds in coming years to lock in gains and limit the potential for big losses, according to Wells Fargo & Co. “Definitely there’s a lot of money that will want to move,” said Andy Hunt, head of global credit and liability-driven investing at Wells Fargo Asset Management, predicting it will happen within roughly five years. “Best case, it’ll be between a half a trillion and a...

August 29, 2017
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29Aug

Pension Fund Dumps Stocks Because ‘There Is No President In The U.S.’

A $53-billion public pension fund isn't sure, so it's dumping the American stocks in its portfolio. Finland's Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Company— the country's largest pension fund— told Bloomberg it has reduced its exposure to stocks by five per cent, most of that reduction coming from U.S. stocks. "It seems as if there is no president in the U.S.," Varma CEO Risto Murto said. "If I look at what is the moral and practical power, there is no longer a traditional...

August 29, 2017
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28Aug

Nigeria. Pension fund investment in govt securities is driven by returns, safety – Leadway Pensions

Mr. David Alao is Acting Asset Manager of Leadway Pensure and a member of the Pension Fund Operators Association of Nigeria (PenOp). In this discourse he maintains that pension funds investment in government securities should be channelled into infrastructure development. A total of 77 per cent of pension fund is invested in federal government instruments and about four per cent in corporate bonds while about six per cent is in money market. If the federal government instruments can yield returns...

August 28, 2017
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28Aug

Australia. Time for longevity risk-pooling: Mercer

Mercer consultants have told a gathering of institutional investors and advisers they must incorporate longevity pooling into portfolios to provide the peace of mind retirees want. Mercer Australia senior actuarial partner Dr David Knox argued that investment managers need to take “an integrated, more holistic approach than just concentrating on investment portfolios”. He said longevity pooling should be incorporated into retirement income portfolios in a way “that maintains the growth ratio, the exposure to growth assets, and the expected return, and...

August 28, 2017
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28Aug

Canada. CPPIB to end Kotak JV plan for stressed assets

Canada's largest pension fund CPPIB will call off its proposed joint venture with Kotak Mahindra Group to invest in stressed assets in India. The $525-million fund that was announced in March 2016 will be wound up as it failed to find investments in stressed assets, said two people with direct knowledge of the development. Kotak Group will now go alone with commitments from some sovereign funds such as Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) and Qatar Investment Authority on a deal...

August 28, 2017
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25Aug

Croatia. Pension Funds in Red Due to Agrokor

Over the past year, four mandatory pension funds- AZ, Erste Plavi, PBZ CO and Raiffensen OMF - have increased the number of memebers by about 55,000 so at the end of July, they had 1.82 million members. The main reason for this, it is assumed, is the growth in employment, which also means the further growth in the pension funds assets, reports Jutarnji List on August 24, 2017. Read more Total Croatia News

August 25, 2017
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25Aug

US. Health care will cost couples $275,000 in retirement

A couple retiring this year will need an estimated $275,000 to cover health care costs in retirement, according to Fidelity. That's a 6% increase over last year. Of course, it's a ballpark number. The true cost depends on a variety of factors like your health and how long you'll live. Plus, there's ongoing uncertainty about what the health care landscape will look like in the future. "No matter how you slice it, the number is brutal," said Adam Stavisky, senior vice...

August 25, 2017
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24Aug

UK. Parlament Probes USS Pension Plan

A prominent member of British parliament and chairman of the work and pensions committee is pressing the country's largest privacy-sector pension fund for details on how it will cut its £17.5 billion ($22.4 billion) deficit. The Universities Superannuation Scheme, or USS, is set for closer scrutiny after the parliamentary committee's chairman Frank Field wrote its trustee board asking how it plans to shore up its increasing shortfall. With more than £60 billion in assets under management, USS tends to be the preferred...

August 24, 2017
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24Aug

Nigerian govt to release funds for October 2016 to August 2017 pensions

The Acting Director-General of National Pension Commission (PenCom), Aisha Dahir-Umar, on Wednesday said the Federal Government had begun working out modalities for pension payment to the next batch of retirees. Mrs. Dahir-Umar told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that the Federal Government and the PenCom would soon release substantial funds for the payment. She said retirees that had perfected their documentation and verification processes would be captured for payments in the next batch. The PenCom boss said the funds...

August 24, 2017
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24Aug

Politics Matters Less and Less, Danish Pension Fund Giant Says

Denmark’s largest private pension fund isn’t that interested in politics anymore. Allan Polack, chief executive officer of PFA, argues that lawmakers and political leaders are out of touch and that globalization has made their decisions less relevant to the business community. "Politics and economics have decoupled a lot in recent years," Polack said in a telephone interview in Copenhagen. "Politicians populate an insulated world of their own, while companies live in another sphere." In an era where a resurgence of populism and...

August 24, 2017
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