May 2022
13May

Why a Zimbabwean firm offers pensions denominated in cows

Kelvin chamunorwa’s mother was a middle manager at a bank in Zimbabwe. She worked there for 25 years, steadily contributing to a pension. But horrendous inflation, which reached an annual rate of 231,000,000% in mid-2008, wiped out her savings. When she retired, her pension was so small it was barely worth collecting. So Mr Chamunorwa, an actuary trained in Britain, started a company, Nhaka Life Assurance, to sell inflation-proof pensions to Zimbabweans. The pensions are not denominated in Zimbabwe dollars,...

May 13, 2022
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05May

Using dollars for change. Seven key insights into impact investing for 2022 and beyond

By FIDELITY Charitable Impact investing is the practice of making purposeful investments that generate financial returns, while also helping to achieve social or environmental benefits— exemplifying the idea of “doing well while doing good.” The idea of linking one’s investments and values has become increasingly popular in recent years, particularly as there are generational shifts in wealth from Baby Boomers to Gen Xers and Millennials. Younger generations bring a new mindset to their everyday decisions—seeking to align their choices with their...

May 5, 2022
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Divorcees often don’t understand pension implications – survey
02May

UK. Divorcees often don’t understand pension implications – survey

No-fault divorce in England and Wales may lead to increase in separations – and financial problems One in six divorced people said they did not realise their pension could be affected by splitting up, a survey has found. More than a third said they made no claim on their former partner’s pension, according to the survey of more than 1,000 divorced people. The research, carried out for Aviva, found 8% of divorcees do not have their own pension savings – and had...

May 2, 2022
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April 2022
25Apr

UK. Govt urged to consider flexible early access to state pension

The government should investigate offering flexibility for people to start taking their state pension up to three years early, but at a reduced level to make it financially fair, Aegon has stated. Responding to a call for evidence into how to set the state pension age in future, Aegon called for a radical overhaul to introduce new flexibilities that would “take state pensions a small step towards private pension freedoms” and support people with more flexible multi-stage lives. Aegon emphasised the...

April 25, 2022
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25Apr

UK. One in five leaving retirement planning till aged 60

One in five people have said they would leave planning their retirement until they were aged at least 60, a survey by Hargreaves Lansdown has revealed. Hargreaves Lansdown warned that leaving retirement planning so late could be dangerous for savers, cautioning that the later planning is left the less time there is to make up any contribution shortfalls, which may limit choices. The client survey, which was carried out in January 2022 and consisted of 400 customers, also found that a...

April 25, 2022
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21Apr

UK. Union threatens to sue over Uber’s failure to offer ‘sharia compliant’ pension plan for Muslim majority workforce

The gig economy workers’ union has threatened to take Uber to court over its failure to offer a “sharia compliant” pension plan for its Muslim majority workforce. The App Drivers & Couriers Union (ADCU) has threatened to sue Uber for failing to provide a pension offering that complies with the tenets of Islamic beliefs, after claiming that the firm’s failure to do so breaches UK equality laws. The ADCU called on Uber to take action within the next 14 days to...

April 21, 2022
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15Apr

Bad Retirement Savers Expect to Die Young

By Allison Bell What workers think about their retirement savings is closely related to how long they think they will live, according to a new Club Vita life expectancy survey. Workers who said that their savings would be enough to pay for a comfortable retirement agreed with Club Vita about how long they might live. Workers who said their savings would be too small to pay for a comfortable retirement predicted that they would die about 7.1 years earlier than Club Vita would have...

April 15, 2022
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14Apr

UK. Can retirement savers make their pension greener?

Pension savers are apparently turning their attention towards environmental, social and governance factors amid the increasing prevalence of ESG investing. Two-thirds (67 per cent) of consumers believe it is important to consider ESG factors before investing, rising to seven in 10 (72 per cent) for those with a pension, according to a survey from Aviva last year. When it comes to defined benefit pension funds, it will be down to the trustees who take advice from a consultant to decide what...

April 14, 2022
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13Apr

Pinbox gets seed capital from ADB Ventures to expand micro pension coverage in India

ADB Ventures, a platform of Asian Development Bank, has provided seed funding to Pinbox for expanding micro pension coverage in India. Read also Kenya. Pensions raise investments in offshore, private equity Pinbox works to address friction and accessibility challenges in delivering micro pension and insurance solutions to underserved informal sector workers, ADB Ventures said in a statement. It provides a ready-to-deploy micro pension technology platform globally to governments and regulators who are seeking to expand pension and insurance coverage .. Read also Australia....

April 13, 2022
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06Apr

UK. Most auto-enrolment pension savers and employers are still anchored to the minimum rate

It’s nearly 10 years since automatic enrolment was launched amid great fanfare; TV adverts featuring famous bosses such as Baroness Brady and Theo Paphitis were part of a huge Government drive which has seen 10.6 million workers enrol in a workplace pension scheme, saving an additional £28.5bn towards their futures. Despite this rip-roaring success, there remains the question of whether the average auto-enrolment member is saving enough for the retirement they want. The Pension Commission, which paved the way for auto-enrolment,...

April 6, 2022
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