All Pensions articles
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White papersRun-on vs buy-out? Key considerations for defined benefit pensions
UK defined benefit pension schemes that have found themselves in a surplus since mid-2022 are considering alternative options over the traditional buy-out with insurers. We explore the key factors pension schemes should consider in their decision making process.
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White papersDoes Tax Deductibility Increase Retirement Saving? Lessons from a French Natural Experiment
This paper presents new evidence on how employees respond to tax incentives for retirement saving. Using administrative data from a large retirement plan administrator in France, we examine the voluntary saving choices of approximately 1.4 million workers before and after the implementation of the 2019 Loi Pacte, a reform that introduced tax-deductible voluntary contributions into employer-sponsored retirement plans.
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White papersOvercoming barriers to retirement savings: behavioural factors and existing schemes
Under-saving for retirement is a major issue for many economies. Benartzi and Thaler (2013) have long diagnosed a ‘retirement savings crisis’. In the US, according to the National Retirement Risk Index, 39% of working-age households will not be able to maintain their standard of living in retirement.
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PodcastOuterblue Conversations – Seeking returns in a disruptive era? Analysis of the 2025 pension survey
Each year, Amundi and CREATE interview pension plans to highlight topics shaping the pension ecosystem. As pension investors transition to a new regime, this year, one question is at the top of everyone’s minds: where will the returns come from? The 2024 survey takes a closer look at two of the potential answers in this search for good risk-adjusted returns: private markets and Asian emerging markets.
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White papersKeep an eye on your tech stocks
Investors have a decent record in ignoring warning signs. In the wake of any big market sell-off, legions of sages have tended to pop up and lament, after the fact, that “the warning signs were there.” Yet the lead-up to each of these reverses has usually been a period of carefree investor exuberance. In other words, if the signs really were there, very few people were paying attention.
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White papersGEMs ESG Materiality, H2 2024: Analysing the cost of climate change
In the latest issue, we probe the risks that climate change potentially represents to emerging market companies. We provide a further update on South Korea’s ‘Corporate Value-Up Programme’, and also discuss our broader voting and engagement activity.
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White papersDC and Bonds: The End of the Affair…and a New Beginning
Bonds’ traditional role in pension allocations is over. But they have a new purpose in a lifetime income strategy.
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White papersThe Patchwork of Eurozone Pension Systems and Budget Constraints
The issue of pension systems in Eurozone countries is significant because pension outlays represent a substantial portion of GDP. And an ageing population increases financing needs. At the same time, country deficits – and consequently debt – have deepened during the Covid period, including through higher interest rates.
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White papersPensions find new sources of long-term cash flows
An upside of higher rates for pension schemes is a reduction in the value of future liabilities. Many defined benefit (DB) pensions in Europe are taking advantage of this to derisk portfolios by locking-in higher-yielding, public investment grade fixed income assets, according to Nuveen’s 2024 EQuilibrium survey. This is freeing them up to explore more private investments and, in some instances, these investments are also playing into schemes’ environmental and social objectives.
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White papersPrivate markets poised to benefit from new strategic landscape
Asset managers are facing growing demand from institutional investors to develop sophisticated private market strategies that balance high long-term risk-adjusted target returns, added diversification benefits, and fundamental value creation.
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White papersPensions investment outlook 2025: US policy uncertainty clouds road ahead
The coming year will likely be characterised by three main drivers: the US’s politically driven polices; structural economic weaknesses and political uncertainty in Europe; and China’s restructuring of its troubled property market.
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White papersConsolidate with caution – Too much focus on scale could come at the expense of innovation
Last month, in an attempt to boost the UK’s growth trajectory, Rachel Reeves unveiled what she claimed was the “biggest pension reform in decades”. She reckons the UK has been regulating for risk, but not regulating for growth – a view many in the industry would agree with.
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White papersWhere will returns come from? Pensions in a new economic regime
Where will returns come from? Pensions in a new economic regime
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White papersSolid equity performances keep funding ratios on a high
Despite experiencing volatility in Q3 2024, markets demonstrated resilience with largely positive returns. The decrease in liability discounting rates in Q3 compensated these good performances, and funding ratios have been mostly stable over the period, still at comfortable levels.
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White papersEuropean Securitisations: Risk and Opportunities for Pension Funds
European Securitisations have recently attracted attention, with 2024 to date seeing record volumes of issuance since the Great Financial Crisis. European regulators have also shown strong support through several recent reports (from Noyer, Letta and Draghi), which have led to a public consultation from the European Commission. We review the opportunities and the associated risk of European securitisations for pension funds.
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White papersBeyond the Numbers: ESG in Action
As the 2024 Amundi-CREATE report highlights, the private markets asset class is particularly suitable for responsible investing. This article explores how an investor in private assets, such as Amundi Alpha Associates, can approach and refine responsible investment capabilities, as well as the practical steps taken to integrate ESG factors into their portfolio monitoring processes.
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White papersSeeking returns in private markets and emerging markets in a disruptive era
As pension investors transition to a new regime, one question has come to the fore: where will the returns come from?
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White papersPension Funds Letter 22 - New realities, new searches for returns
Amongst other things, 2024 will be remembered for being the year of elections. More voters than ever before, over half the world’s population, had the opportunity to express their vote this year. While almost all these votes have now been counted, what the different outcomes will mean both domestically and more globally is only likely to become clear next year. We wait especially with bated breath, to see how Trump 2.0 will play out around the world.
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White papersThe Scale Effect: How Size Shapes Investment Governance and Allocation
Recent years have witnessed a trend in pension plans towards larger size, as large institutions continue to gather assets and as smaller investors group together to emulate their larger peers’ perceived successes.
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White papersCharting the unpredictable: Harnessing data-driven solutions to enhance investment decision making
Pension funds, long regarded as the bedrock of long-term financial security for millions of workers worldwide, are currently navigating an increasingly tumultuous landscape. Traditionally conservative in their investment strategies, these institutions now face a confluence of challenges that demand innovative thinking and strategic foresight.
