June 2020

24Jun

Kenya proposes CMA to regulate private equity firms

Kenya, a popular investment destination for private equity (PE) firms, has proposed measures to make the operations of PE firms and venture capitalists more transparent by bringing them under the scrutiny of the Capital Markets Authority (CMA). Read also The Mixed Case for Private Equity in Retirement Plans The plan is already causing disquiet among PE firms whose fund raising and choice of companies to invest in is often shrouded in secrecy. The measures were announced by the National Treasury...

June 24, 2020
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22Jun

India. Govt may restrict foreign investment in pension funds

Amid LAC tension, the Finance Ministry has proposed restrictions on pension fund investments from any bordering country. Foreign investment in pension funds regulated by the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority is capped at 49 per cent under the automatic route. According to a draft notification circulated for comments on Friday, “A government approval would be required for the investing entity or individual from any of the bordering countries, including China.” The restriction will be applicable from the date...

June 22, 2020
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22Jun

Lawmakers Offer Help to Japanese Banks Battling Fintech Firms

Japanese ruling-party lawmakers are looking to make it easier for banks to expand into different industries, a step that could help traditional lenders push back against tech rivals. The Liberal Democratic Party’s financial policy research panel wants to amend the banking law next year to relax limits on lenders’ lines of business as well as their investments in non-financial firms. The proposal, released last week, didn’t specify which areas banks might be allowed to enter. Japan’s government has been...

June 22, 2020
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20Jun

Journal of Pension Economics & Finance

By: Monika Bütler, Olivia S. Mitchell, J. Michael Orszag. The Journal of Pension Economics and Finance (JPEF) is the only academic journal focusing on the economics and finance of pensions and retirement income. The ageing population, together with the shrinking workforce, heralds a growing pensions crisis, which has become a key public policy issue in developed countries and elsewhere. JPEF provides a valuable and influential forum for international debate in this area. The journal is co-sponsored by the International Organisation of Pension Supervisors...

June 20, 2020
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18Jun

US. Trump SEC Chairman Urges 401ks To Gamble Away Coronavirus Losses

By Edward Siedle Trump SEC Chairman Jay Clayton urges 401k plan sponsors and investors to gamble on private equity funds as a means of recovering coronavirus losses. Since when is it the job of the Chairman of the world’s premier securities regulator to encourage reckless risk-taking by American workers already reeling from pandemic losses? Last week, the U.S. Department of Labor opened the door for plan sponsors to add private equity funds to their 401(k) plans. The Trump administration claims...

June 18, 2020
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16Jun

Global pension assets rose to $32 trillion in 2019

According to information and data from the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, OECD, pension fund assets rose to $32 trillion in OECD area and $0.7 trillion in 29 other selected (non-OECD) reporting jurisdictions in 2019. A country by country analysis shows that the United States of America has the largest amount of pension fund assets in the amount of $18.8 trillion. The US is followed by the United Kingdom with pension assets of $3.6 trillion, Australia, $1.8 trillion,...

June 16, 2020
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16Jun

Australia’s Biggest Pension Fund Eyes PE, Credit Amid Low Rates

AustralianSuper, the nation’s largest pension fund, is seeking private-equity opportunities and looking to lift credit holdings as it sees limited returns from government bonds. The fund is holding more cash than it would traditionally, Mark Delaney, the chief investment officer of Melbourne-based AustralianSuper, told Bloomberg’s Inside Track series Tuesday. It is underweight government bonds and maintained its long-term weightings in equities during the market turbulence amid the coronavirus pandemic, Delaney said. “If we get a chance and the markets...

June 16, 2020
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15Jun

Top US pension fund aims to juice returns via $80bn leverage plan

Calpers is to move deeper into private equity and private debt by adopting a bold leverage strategy that the $395bn Californian public sector pension fund believes will help it achieve its ambitious 7 per cent rate of return. In a presentation to the Calpers board, Ben Meng, chief investment officer, said the giant fund would take on additional leverage via borrowings and financial instruments such as equity futures. Leverage could be as high as 20 per cent of the...

June 15, 2020
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15Jun

Pension giant and BNP Paribas AM unite for climate lobbying effort

AP7, BNP Paribas Asset Management and the Church of England Pensions Board have partnered with specialist advisory firm Chronos Sustainability to develop a framework to guide responsible corporate climate change lobbying The Swedish pension fund, French asset manager and English group have teamed up to better assess whether corporate lobbying is aligned with climate change goals, as set out in the Paris Agreement. The project will develop on existing efforts to create a credible and systematic means of measuring...

June 15, 2020
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12Jun

Kenya. Pensions holdings in bonds up Sh92 billion

Pension funds have raised holdings of government debt by Sh92 billion since the beginning of the year, turning to the securities for assured yields at a time equities and property have taken a beating from the pandemic. The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) data shows the funds now account for 29.46 per cent of government domestic debt, which at the end of May stood at Sh3.155 trillion. This translates to holdings worth Sh929.7 billion for the pension funds. At...

June 12, 2020
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