The value of funded pensions can depend critically on the funds' investment performance. To try and protect people's savings, governments often regulate pension funds strictly, particularly when contributions are mandatory. For example, the new funded pension systems in Latin America and Eastern...

The transition from a wholly public, pay-as-you go pension system to one where pensions are also provided by individual, privately managed pension accounts does not directly affect those receiving pensions at the time of the reform. Nevertheless, it could affect all current and future workers. A...

The adequacy of retirement incomes is a central goal of all types of pension system. In defined contribution pension plans, the benefit depends on the amount of money paid in, the investment returns earned, and the amount fund managers charge for administering accounts and investing the assets....

There is a widespread perception that public pension systems in richer countries are in crisis. As schemes mature and the population ages, the burden of financing pensions has grown and, on current policies, will rise much further. Developing countries are younger and pension systems relatively...

"The current account can be understood as the outcome of investment decisions made by domestic and foreign investors. These decisions can be decomposed into a portfolio rebalancing and a portfolio growth component. This paper provides empirical evidence of the importance of portfolio rebalancing...

Immunization deserves high priority, especially in developing countries, for three reasons: vaccine-preventable diseases, disproportionately affect the poorest fifth of the population; immunization is among the most cost-effective interventions, and has a major impact in reducing the burden of...

"This paper studies the relation between institutional investors and capital market development by analyzing unique data on monthly asset-level portfolio allocations of Chilean pension funds between 1995 and 2005. The results depict pension funds as large and important institutional investors...