September 2024
06Sep

Pensions Dashboards Programme. Progress update report

By Pensions Dashboards Programme This is the 9th Pensions Dashboards Programme (PDP) progress update report, covering our work to deliver the technical solution and facilitate connection to the dashboards ecosystem. It looks back at our achievements since October 2023, as well as looking ahead to our focus areas for the next 6 months. After a legal connection deadline of 31 October 2026 was set last year, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has now published a revised staged timetable for...

September 6, 2024
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June 2024
25Jun

Transforming UK Pensions Landscape – The role of QPDS under the Pension Dashboard Program

As per the latest survey, one in four people has lost track of at least one pension in the UK, with almost three million pension pots left unclaimed. The estimated combined value of these unclaimed pensions is a staggering £26.6 billion1. Thus, a pressing need was long felt by the authorities and pension holders in the UK for a program that helps consolidate and simplify access to pension information across multiple pension providers, helping individuals better manage and plan...

June 25, 2024
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13Jun

UK. Auto-enrolment ambitions must go above and beyond just pensions

If I were to point to the most sensible decision made in pensions policy in the last 20 years, the introduction of auto-enrolment (AE) in 2012 would no doubt top the list. In one swoop, the mandatory law made saving for retirement the norm and improved the chances of maintaining a decent standard of living in later life for millions of employees. Of course, AE was never supposed to be the last word. It was meant to be the beginning of...

June 13, 2024
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07Jun

Investigation into the Pensions Dashboards Programme

By National Audit Office Pensions dashboards are intended to allow people to view information about their pensions – including their State Pension – online, securely and in one place. The Department for Work & Pensions (DWP) expects that pensions dashboards will deliver significant benefits by supporting people to plan better for retirement, make more informed financial decisions and connect with ‘lost’ pension pots. Get the report here

June 7, 2024
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May 2024
10May

UK government’s Pensions Dashboards Programme delayed

The UK government’s high-profile Pensions Dashboards Programme (PDP) is behind schedule due to ineffective governance and a lack of people with the right skills and experience, a National Audit Office (NAO) report has revealed. This has contributed to pushing the date for the new platform to be connected to providers to October 31, 2026, a year later than planned. Costs have also risen from £235 million ($295 million) in 2020 to £289 million in 2023, an increase of 23%. The Pensions Dashboards Programme (PDP)...

May 10, 2024
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09May

Swiss Parliament pushes discussion on pension funds’ cost transparency

The social security and health committee of the National Council (SGK-N), the lower house of the Swiss Parliament, has voted in favour of submitting a motion to discuss pension funds’ obligations on costs disclosure. The committee shares the view of the Swiss Federal Audit Office (SFAO), that information on administrative costs should be easily accessible and comprehensible for the general public, it said in a statement. Only a minority of the members of the committee considers the existing rules on pension funds’...

May 9, 2024
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03May

UK. Average overall pension transfer times fall by 12.2%

The average time taken for a pension transfer to be completed reduced by 12.2% over the last 15 months, research from Origo has shown. The latest data from the fintech's Transfer Index showed from January 2023 to the end of March this year, the average time for the completion of a transfer fell from 14 to 12.3 calendar days. In addition, the time taken for simple transfers, where the provider has full control over the process, also improved by 16.7%...

May 3, 2024
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April 2024
01Apr

Portugal. Automatic Pension Scheme to be Approved

Heather Humphreys, the minister for social protection, has outlined her plan to implement the much-anticipated pension auto-enrolment programme for workers. Under the plan, businesses would match employee contributions with an additional €3, meaning that the State will contribute €1 for every €3 an employee contributes to their pension account. Workers between the ages of 23 and 60 who are not currently registered in a pension plan will be enrolled automatically. There will be a clause in the law allowing employees...

April 1, 2024
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January 2024
16Jan

Canada: Understanding Cyber Risks For Pension Plan Administrators, ACPM

As pension plans are increasingly relying on technology in their administration, there is a corresponding focus on keeping plan assets safe and protecting the rights and interests of plan beneficiaries. Pension plans involve significant amounts of confidential, personal data and assets, making them targets for criminal activity. Pension plan administrators and sponsors are expected to be prepared to recognize, prevent or minimize damage in the event of harm from cyber risks. What this means for how pension administrators discharge their...

January 16, 2024
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10Jan

Kenya. Auditor General’s Report Reveals Ksh.67B Lost Through Fake Pension Scheme Payments

Auditor General Nancy Gathungu has lifted the lid on the Ksh.67 billion loss of public funds through fake payments made to pensioners whose realness is also in question. The performance report by the Auditor General on the fund shows that top civil servants manning the scheme were among others using duplicate IDs to enrol fake claimants, occasioning the loss of taxpayers' money.  Officials in the National Treasury are said to have colluded to defraud the pension fund of billions of shillings...

January 10, 2024
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