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May 2019

India. Pension fund regulator to work with Nasscom, startups for National Pension System

The pension fund regulator is in the process of undertaking steps to identify the areas under the National Pension System (NPS) which could utilise the financial technologies (fintech) using the regulatory sandbox approach for the benefit of subscribers and NPS as a whole. A regulatory sandbox (RS) usually refers to live-testing of new products or services in a controlled and test regulatory environment for which regulators may or may not permit certain regulatory relaxations for the limited purpose of...

March 2019

India. Serving, retired staff of government insurers to benefit from pension scheme

Retired and serving employees of government-owned insurance companies are happy at the Centre's decision to offer another chance to opt for pension scheme. "I am happy with the development. With the interest rates on bank deposits sliding down, getting a steady pension income is good. I am going to opt for pension," said Y. Sivam, a retired employee of National Insurance Company Ltd. A serving employee in the same company said: "Earlier I didn't opt for the pension...

January 2019

PFRDA to audit pension funds on corporate governance

Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) is planning to audit the pension funds/sponsors, who manage pension assets worth over Rs 2.8 lakh crore for 2.48 crore subscribers. The pension fund managers (PFMs), appointed to manage the retirement savings of subscribers under the NPS, will be audited on seven parameters, including reporting & disclosures, investments, corporate governance and senior management. As per Regulation 26 of the PFRDA (Pension Funds) Regulation 2015, PFRDA may undertake directly or through its authorised...

Micro-pensions can boost security for India’s elderly poor

Only 4 per cent households were covered under widow pension, 2 per cent retirement pension and 1.5 per cent under disability pension. India is home to one-fifth of the world’s population which includes a third of the world’s poor and one-eighth of the world’s elderly. Most of them spend their whole lives as informal workers and have no retirement security other than the hope that their children will care for them in their old age. This arrangement worked well...

December 2018

Meeting India’s Retirement Challenge

By Richard Jackson ALTHOUGH RAPID DEVELOPMENT BRINGS GREAT BENEFITS, it also creates great challenges. Among the most critical is ensuring a measure of security for the old, who often find themselves vulnerable and marginalized as economic growth accelerates and traditional social and cultural norms are overturned. When rapid development is combined with rapid population aging, confronting the challenge becomes all the more urgent. India is one of the world’s most rapidly developing countries. Like most emerging markets, it is also progressing...

India. Senior Citizens Should Get Meaningful Pension: SC

The Supreme Court on Thursday said that senior citizens should get a meaningful pension to live with dignity, and not just the equivalent of Rs 92 at current value. The apex court said the State was "obligated to ensure" that the right to live with dignity that includes reasonable shelter, health care, clothing and meaningful pension for elderly people without any means was "not only protected but are enforced and made available to all citizens". Noting that in real terms the...

Pension savings withdrawal made 100% tax free in India

The government has made the NPSmore tax friendly by offering complete tax exemption to the 60% of the corpus that an investor can withdraw on maturity. When they retire, NPS investors have to use 40% of the corpus to buy an annuity and can withdraw the remaining 60% of the corpus. Till now, only 40% of this withdrawn amount was tax free, while the remaining 20% was taxed. Last week, the Union Cabinet approved a proposal to enhance the tax exemption limit to...

India. Why pension funds are a good bet for investors

They are regulated by India's Pension Fund & Regulatory Development Authority Q: Investment in pension funds is becoming quite popular. As I am returning to India for good this year, I want to know how safe and secure these funds are and whether they are properly regulated? A: Pension funds are regulated by the Pension Fund & Regulatory Development Authority (PFRDA). This authority exercises control over pension fund managers (PFM). The PFMs are permitted to invest only in corporate bonds which...

November 2018

India low on global pension index; proactive regulation can bring meaningful change

A study says steps like introducing minimum level of support for the poor can lead to increase in India’s index value The pension and retirement income system in India has figured in the lowest category in the world, according to the Melbourne Mercer Global Pension Index 2018, published by Mercer, a human resources consulting firm, along with Australian Centre for Financial Studies and Monash University. The other countries in this category along with India are Japan, South Korea, China, Mexico and...

September 2018

India. PFRDA caps MF investment by NPS; Kotak Pension most hit

A recent circular from PFRDA says pension fund managers of NPS can invest only 5% of corpus in mutual funds The pension regulator has finally taken cognizance of the fact that pension fund managers (PFMs) under the National Pension System (NPS) shouldn’t outsource fund management to mutual fund companies. A circular issued by the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) on 20 August puts a cap on the amount of corpus the PFMs can invest in MFs to manage...