July 2017

05Jul

UK. How to adapt to survive the post Brexit pensions world

This article highlights key insights from Barnett Waddinghams Employer Conference, which focused on the impact of change on companies’ pension strategies. We explain how to set a dynamic pension strategy that will be resilient in the face of changes in markets, whilst remaining cost effective over the longer term. Pension strategies have evolved Current levels of deficits arising from low gilt yields may have felt like a bolt from the blue, but this was no meteorite to kill the DB dinosaur....

July 5, 2017
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04Jul

UK. 1 million to opt out of pension in 2019

A million people will choose to miss out on crucial retirement saving in 2019, Government figures predict. This is despite the fact that auto-enrolment will be fully in place by then, at least for all employees that meet the current criteria. We've taken a closer look. The figure is based on the current percentage of members who have opted out of their workplace pension schemes, which is 10%. This is estimated to increase to 21.7% in 2018 and 27.5% in...

July 4, 2017
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04Jul

Kenya introduces new retirement plan for its 500,000 civil servants

Kenya’s introduction of a new retirement plan for civil servants is set to spur growth in the pension fund industry, potentially helping to triple assets under management, according to the head of the new government employee fund. The country’s 500,000 public workers were required to contribute 7.5% of their salaries to the new fund from this month, which would be supplemented by a 15% contribution from the government, Edward Odundo said in an interview in the capital, Nairobi. The fund sought...

July 4, 2017
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03Jul

US. Retirement savers ditch the ‘do it yourself’ approach, opt for target dated funds and professional guidance

It turns out "do-it-yourself" investing is not all that it's cracked up to be. Employees saving for retirement in workplace 401(k) plans are increasingly eager (or willing) to autopilot their allocation and portfolio management decisions. Vanguard reports that among the more than 8,500 retirement plans it administers, with more than 4.6 million participants, usage of target date funds, balanced funds or managed account services has tripled in the decade. This explosive growth has taken place since Washington gave its blessing for...

July 3, 2017
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03Jul

Japan’s GPIF says allocated 1 trillion yen to ethical investments

Japan's Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF), the world's largest pension fund, said on Monday it has allocated 1 trillion yen ($8.9 billion) of funds to socially responsible investments. That represents about 3 percent of its Japanese stocks portfolio and, in the medium term, the fund could increase its investment in companies that have good ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) practices, the fund said. Market players said the allocation change by the mammoth fund with total assets of 144 trillion yen ($1.3...

July 3, 2017
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03Jul

UK pension consultants prepare for era of no-nonsense

They kept a low profile as banks and other pillars of the finacial services industry were upbraided by regulators. Now the consultants who influence how trillions of pounds of pensions are invested are finally under pressure. Any hopes the industry had of avoiding a full-scale antitrust probe were dashed last week by the City watchdog. Dominated by three big players - Mercer, Aon Hewitt and Willis Towers Watson - consultants had avoided the gaze of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), despite...

July 3, 2017
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June 2017

30Jun

Pacific Alliance reaches tax accord for pension funds

The Pacific Alliance trade group said on Thursday it has reached a tax agreement for pension funds operating in the bloc's four nations in an effort to stimulate investment in infrastructure projects. The alliance, which comprises Colombia, Chile, Mexico and Peru, was formed in April 2011, aimed at improving trade flows and bolstering investment. Pension fund administrators in the four countries have about $450 billion to invest in sectors like highways and other infrastructure projects, Colombian Finance Minister Mauricio Cardenas told...

June 30, 2017
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30Jun

Romanian stocks after tax and pension policy shock

The Romanian leu and stocks firmed slightly on Friday, recouping some of their losses from Thursday when the new government was voted in, as the new prime minister denied they were planning to dismantle private pension funds. Romanian markets plunged on Thursday after the ruling Social Democrats announced an unexpected tax overhaul, which was not discussed with business figures beforehand, and the new finance minister said they were planning to dismantle a multi-billion private pension scheme. Hungary and Poland had taken...

June 30, 2017
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30Jun

US. Automation making a big difference in millennials’ retirement plans

Wells Fargo, after examining the 4 million accounts of its 401(k) plan participants, found that its millennial workers are saving more for retirement when automatic enrollment and qualified default investment alternatives, like target-date funds and managed accounts, are made available. In fact, Wells Fargo found that 85% of younger workers stay in the plan when automatically enrolled, according to a study the financial services company release titled “Wells Fargo Driving Plan Health.” Wells Fargo finds that when younger workers are automatically...

June 30, 2017
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29Jun

Regulation, red tape, sometimes necessary as Grenfell and BHS prove in different ways

How often have you heard politicians, especially low-rent Conservative politicians, banging on about red tape? If we just took up our scissors and cut through the lot of it then the British economy would surge off into the stratosphere, leaving those of our (former) EU friends in the dust! We'd be richer and happier as a foggy Asian tiger! Now, if we could just get the flights over there sorted out. Better get Boris Island built in the Thames estuary. With...

June 29, 2017
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