December 2024

2024 is a record year for ETFs in Latin America, especially among pension funds

According to a report by ETFGI, this year will be historic for the global ETF sector. By the end of August, the industry reached a new all-time high of $13.99 billion in assets under management, surpassing the previous record of $13.61 billion. In the emerging markets of Latin America, the trend is similar, driven by increased liquidity in the region. This is particularly evident among the largest pension funds, whose managers have long used ETFs as one of their preferred...

US Pension Plans Set to Increase Contributions in 2025

Approximately 58% of pension funds in the U.S.—including public, corporate and multi-employer plans—reported that their funded status increased in 2024, according to a survey of pension fund professionals commissioned by Ortec Finance. Approximately 30% of plans reported that their funding status is unchanged, while 12% said their funding status decreased this year. While funded status is generally increasing, more than two-thirds (68%) of respondents said they will or are likely to increase contributions this year. According to Ortec Finance, of the...

Canada. Navigating Change: Developments in the Pensions and Benefits Sector

Recent regulatory changes, case law precedents and best practices are reshaping the pensions and benefits sector. These changes emphasize the need for robust compliance, governance and strategic planning to effectively navigate emerging risks and obligations. Below are five key developments that plan administrators and stakeholders should keep in mind. Regulatory Updates. The federal government has introduced proposed amendments that would require OSFI to publish investment information with respect to certain federally regulated pension plans. Provincially, Ontario filed various regulations to implement...

Aon UK DC Pension Tracker – Q3 2024: State Pension increase drives rise in savers’ expected incomes

By Aon Over Q2 as a whole, the Aon UK DC Tracker rose which suggests the expected future living standard in retirement provided by defined contribution (DC) savings was higher than at the end of the previous quarter. All members benefited from the April 2024 increase in the state pension, which increased from £10,600 to £11,500 per year. The oldest saver saw the largest proportionate increase from this change as the state pension makes up a larger proportion of their expected retirement income. Positive returns...

Pulse Report. Afire International Investor Survey

By Afire International Investor Survey   As an extension of housing concerns in the US, trends in the insurance industry can sometimes serve as portents, or as evidence. At the junction between the global, environmental effects of climate change and the frequently counterintuitive logic of homeowners, renters, and consumers in the US, the question of insurance is best understood as an analogy. For example, earlier in 2024, AFIRE asked investors if they agreed or disagreed with the sentiment that the industry...

Private Equity for Pension Plans? Evaluating Private Equity Performance from an Investor’s Perspective

By Arthur Korteweg, Stavros Panageas & Anand Systla We evaluate private equity (PE) performance using investor-specific stochastic discount factors, and examine whether investors could benefit from changing their allocation to PE. Plans invest in PE funds with higher average risk-adjusted performance. This is mainly due to access to successful PE managers, not superior selection skill. Decomposing returns into risk-compensation and "alpha", we find that some plans obtain higher PE returns by taking more risk without earning higher, and in some cases earning lower,...

AllianzGI Approved for China Pension Firm Stake

The investment arm of Allianz has been approved to become the first foreign asset manager to own a stake in China’s pension insurance company. Allianz Global Investors has received regulatory approval for investment in a 2 percent stake in Guomin Pension & Insurance Company, according to a statement. This makes it the first foreign asset manager to own a stake in the pension insurer. AllianzGI has been approved to subscribe to around 228 million newly issued shares in Guomin Pension worth approximately...

Latin America Lags in Establishing Sovereign Funds, Report Finds

A recent report from the International Forum of Sovereign Wealth Funds investigated why Latin America lags behind other emerging markets in developing sovereign wealth funds beyond stabilization funds. “It is striking that, in Latin America today, there are 12 sovereign wealth funds, nearly all of which are traditional stabilization funds,” the report stated. Unlike most sovereign wealth funds, stabilization funds can be drawn on by governments to reduce the impact of volatile revenue on the economy. Because the assets in the funds might...

OECD Pensions Outlook 2024: Improving Asset-backed Pensions for Better Retirement Outcomes and More Resilient Pension Systems

By Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Over the past two decades, asset-backed pensions have become a key pillar of retirement systems, with assets more than tripling to over USD 56 trillion in 2023. These pensions diversify resources for financing retirement and complement pay-as-you-go systems, enhancing resilience to economic shocks and demographic challenges. Their robust design, regulation, and supervision are important for delivering strong retirement outcomes. The 2024 OECD Pensions Outlook provides a valuable resource for policymakers, regulators, and stakeholders, providing comprehensive analysis...

UK. The case for pension scheme investment in Bitcoin

In this article, Sam Roberts, the director of investment consulting at the scheme's adviser, Cartwright, explains why he believes Bitcoin has now evolved from a niche digital asset into a mainstream investment opportunity… Remember what they said about the following … Facebook...? It will never take off... a passing trend… no long-term growth. The reality was it became one of the largest social media platforms worldwide, a multibillion-dollar company, and paved the way for social media as we know it. ...