May 2020
14May

UK. Govt told to scrap pensions triple lock to reduce virus debt

The pensions triple lock could be scrapped in the near future as the government looks to recoup the hundreds of billions of pounds it has spent on Covid-19 support. According to a Treasury document dated May 5, seen by the Telegraph, chancellor Rishi Sunak has been advised to break one of the Conservatives’ manifesto pledges and scrap the pension triple lock on state pension rises. Under current rules, the state pension is increased by the triple lock which is...

May 14, 2020
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13May

COVID-19 Economy: Why Nigeria must develop digital economy, increase national savings

Foreign Investment Network (FIN) has listed a number of economic strategies Nigeria and other African countries could adopt, to avert the economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. FIN is a United Kingdom-based company driving foreign direct investment, FDI for Africa and other developing economies. Read also Tesla’s Newest Board Member Talks About Changing The World Through Japan’s $1.5 Trillion Pension Fund The group, in a video conference programme it organised, themed: COVID-19 and The Economic Threat: How Africa can overcome...

May 13, 2020
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12May

Stock market wipes out Kenyan pensioners’ $350m in just three months

Kenyan retirees lost over Ksh35 billion ($350 million) to falling stock prices and soaring inflation as the Covid-19 pandemic wreaked havoc on the country’s economy in the past three months. Read also Australia. COVID-19 has killed 12% superannuation A survey conducted by Zamara Consulting Actuaries covering 415 pension schemes with a total of Ksh852.4 billion ($8.52 billion) in assets under management shows that the returns on pensioners’ investments in the three months to March 31 dropped, prompting a shift from...

May 12, 2020
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12May

Covid-19 impact: Global pension funds pause India investment

Top global pension funds have suspended India investment plans until they come to grips with the damage Covid-19 does to global and local economies, and their portfolios stabilise amid extreme market volatility and uncertainty. Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan (OTPP), Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB), Australian Super and Caisse de Dépôt et Placement du Québec (CDPQ), among others, had slated billions of dollars in India directly, via private equity (PE) or other funds, but have either put plans on...

May 12, 2020
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12May

US. How COVID-19 Has Changed Retirement Planning

The global COVID-19 pandemic has touched virtually every aspect of our lives, not least of which is how we save for retirement. Forbes Advisor commissioned a YouGov survey of 9,675 U.S. adults to get a deeper read on how coronavirus has impacted retirement planning. The answers were surprising. With a near total lockdown on business activity in the U.S., we wanted to understand how people have begun to reorient their financial priorities. As Warren Buffett explained in the Berkshire...

May 12, 2020
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11May

Protecting financial consumers during the COVID-19 crisis

Financial regulators around the world are struggling to deal with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. As consumers’ financial circumstances deteriorate as a result of the crisis, it is crucial to ensure that financial institutions treat consumers fairly and bad behavior does not add to consumer suffering. International media and organizations have highlighted concerns, such as consumer over-indebtedness increasing quickly due to the crisis and fraudsters exploiting fears over the pandemic to target financial consumers. Regulators are recognizing...

May 11, 2020
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11May

Australia. COVID-19 has killed 12% superannuation

For years MacroBusiness has argued that Australia’s superannuation guarantee (SG) should not be raised from the current level of 9.5% to 12%. Our arguments against lifting the SG centre around four key issues. First, superannuation concessions are grossly inequitable and favour high income earners. This inequity is illustrated clearly by the below Australian Treasury chart, which shows that the top 1% of earners will receive roughly 14-times the taxpayer contributions to their personal superannuation accounts as the bottom 10%...

May 11, 2020
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11May

Covid-19, Longevity Risk & the Economics of Annuitization

Although the dire medical situation and mounting economic toll of covid-19 is of immediate and first-order importance, the virus has also prompted many to ponder their own mortality. Whether it’s doctors in emergency rooms who quickly redrafted codicils or nursing home attendants pondering their own DNR instructions, the randomness or mortality is being imprinted on our susceptible behavioral minds. Interestingly, preliminary and anecdotal evidence suggests a spike in the acquisition of life insurance policies over the last few months,...

May 11, 2020
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08May

J.P. COVID impact on markets: research update

By Michael Cembales The first table itemizes monetary and fiscal stimulus unleashed by the Federal Reserve and other Central Banks in recent weeks, measured as Central Bank liquidity provisions, new fiscal stimulus programs and rate cuts. For context, new fiscal stimulus and total fiscal deficits in the US are roughly double the levels seen in 2008-2009, and the US fiscal deficit we project for 2020 of 15%-18% is only matched by deficits seen at the height of WWII in 1942-1943. ...

May 8, 2020
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08May

US. J.P. Morgan report estimates pandemic’s impact on unfunded retirement benefits

Banking giant J.P. Morgan issued a report estimating the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and economic downturn on states’ unfunded pension and retiree healthcare liabilities, noting Connecticut would have to pay nearly 40 percent of its revenue for the next thirty years to pay off nearly $70 billion in unfunded liabilities. Connecticut had the fourth highest cost to pay off its liabilities, with Hawaii, New Jersey and Illinois faring worse. According to the report, the economic downturn added another...

May 8, 2020
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