By Margaret Ryznar The CARES Act targeting the economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic allows taxpayers to withdraw up to $100,000 from their retirement savings, such as section 401(k) plans, without the typical 10% penalty for early withdrawal. However, retirement accounts do not make for ideal emergency funds. This Article therefore advocates that future legislation should incentivize separate savings funds. Source: SSRN
By Maria Laura Alzua, Natalia Cantet, Ana Dammert, Damilola Olajide Many countries in the developing world have implemented non-contributory old-age pensions. Evidence of the impact of such policies on the elderly in Sub-Saharan Africa is scarce, however. In this paper, we provide the first evidence from a randomized evaluation of an unconditional, non-contributory pension scheme targeted at the elderly in Ekiti State, Nigeria. Our findings show that treated beneficiaries self-reported better quality of life, more stable mental health, and...
By Ján Šebo, Ştefan Dragoş Voicu, Carsten Andersen, Aleksandra Mączyńska, Didier Davydoff, Lorenzo Marchionni, Marissa Diaz, Michal Mešťan, Lubomir Christoff, Edin Mujagić, Gabaut Laetitia, Grégoire Naacke, Johannes Hagen, Guillaume Prache, Fernando Herrero In June 2013, BETTER FINANCE published a research report entitled “Private Pensions: The Real Return” which evaluated the return of private pension products after charges, after inflation (“real” returns) and – where possible – after taxation. This first report furthermore identified the factors affecting these returns in...
