February 2021
18Feb

US Corporate Pension Funded Ratio Climbs to 89.8% in January

The funded ratio of the 100 largest corporate defined benefit (DB) pension plans improved to 89.8% at the end of January from 88.1% at the end of December as their aggregate deficit fell below $200 billion for the first time in more than a year, according to consulting firm Milliman. With the help of a 16 basis point (bp) increase in the monthly discount rate to 2.62% from 2.46%, the plans’ funding improved by $39 billion in January as their...

February 18, 2021
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08Feb

Norwegian Parties Agree to Expand Workplace Pension Plans

Norway’s ruling three-party coalition agreed with the opposition Progress Party to remove restrictions on private occupational pension plans so they can be extended to young and part-time workers. The changes would require employers to pay contributions to pension funds to those who work as little as one day a week, workers who earn less than the current basic amount under the national insurance system -- now at 101,351 kroner ($11,883) per year -- and to staff younger than 20. The...

February 8, 2021
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January 2021

22Jan

US. Multiemployer pension plans could soon see relief

Legislation to help struggling multiemployer pension funds is to be introduced Thursday in the House and could be headed for passage if bundled with a COVID-19 relief measure now before Congress. The proposal also calls for some funding relief for single employer plans through extended amortization periods and pension interest rate smoothing changes. The proposed Emergency Pension Plan Relief Act of 2021 is based on similar multiemployer pension reform legislation proposed in the last session of Congress as part...

January 22, 2021
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07Jan

One in eight in UK lose track of workplace pensions

One in eight Brits have admitted to not knowing how many old workplace pension pots they have, according to a new poll. Some 13% of respondents surveyed by investment platform Interactive Investor said the number of workplace pensions they had was a mystery. “The mystery of missing pensions is one you definitely want to solve as over the years,” said Becky O’Connor, head of pensions and savings at Interactive Investor, said. “Investment growth – even for pots you haven’t been contributing...

January 7, 2021
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December 2020

30Dec

US. Multiemployer Pensions Update: A Lump Of Coal In Their Christmas Stockings

How do you write about something that didn’t happen? On Sunday night, President Trump, after much delay, signed the combo Covid-relief and omnibus appropriations bill. Since I had been bookmarking a variety of articles that anticipated the inclusion of retirement related provisions in that bill, and even more voices calling for the need to resolve the multiemployer pension crisis (which I myself last addressed in October), I looked at the text as soon as it was made available, went...

December 30, 2020
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03Dec

DB or not DB, what is the solution?

By Mark Daniel  Mark Daniel takes us on a pensions journey, exploring various DB and DC plan designs and how these can help manage costs and possible risks. What a difference two years make. Boris Johnson is now the Prime Minister, Liverpool finally became Premier League Champions and, sadly (for me), Huddersfield Town are back down in football’s second tier. And then there is COVID-19. Who could have predicted any of the above? Admittedly, you didn’t need a...

December 3, 2020
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03Dec

UK. Majority of employers oppose multiple pensions dashboards

The majority (82 per cent) of employers are opposed to multiple dashboards and dashboards that do not include state pensions, research from the Association of Consulting Actuaries (ACA) has revealed. It also found that less than half of employers have cleaned their data in readiness for pensions dashboards. The ACA's survey revealed "strong support" for elements of the Pension Schemes Bill, although a quarter of employers remain opposed to the regulator's direction of travel. In particular, the research found...

December 3, 2020
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02Dec

UK. Following Arcadia, Debenhams set to close putting 12,000 jobs at risk

Debenhams stores are set to close after the failure of last-ditch efforts to rescue the ailing store chain. It means all 12,000 employees are likely to lose their jobs when the chain's 124 shops cease trading. The news comes just hours after Topshop owner Arcadia fell into administration, putting 13,000 jobs at risk. Debenhams itself had been in administration since April. Hopes of a rescue were crushed after the last remaining bidder, JD Sports, withdrew. Staff were told the...

December 2, 2020
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01Dec

UK. Arcadia is bankrupt. What will happen to the 10,000 of its pension plan?

The pension pots of thousands of employees of Topshop owner Arcadia are hanging in the balance as the retail group is hours from collapsing into administration. The pension scheme of the Arcadia group, which is expected to go bust today putting some 13,000 jobs at risk, is labouring under an estimated £350million deficit. The defined benefit pension fund could potentially be picked up by the official lifeboat scheme - the Pension Protection Fund - but that would...

December 1, 2020
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November 2020

27Nov

U.K. clarifies timeline for reform of inflation measure

Investment consultants and the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association welcomed clarity over the future use of the retail price index to calculate U.K pension benefits and liabilities, but warned that the change will still be detrimental to participants. Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak announced Wednesday that the RPI calculation of inflation will be reformed to bring it into line with another measure of inflation — the consumer price index — starting in 2030 at the earliest. The change...

November 27, 2020
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