Pension trends in the United States, marked by the movement toward defined contribution (DC) plans, raise questions about the individual characteristics that influence retirement saving behavior. This study examines how DC participants' industry and employer characteristics relate to the...

Poor financial market returns and low long-term real interest rates in recent years have created challenges for the sponsors of defined benefit pension schemes. At the same time, lower payroll tax revenues in a period of high unemployment, and rising fiscal deficits in many advanced economies as...

This paper reviews and makes comparative assessment of models of pensions systems. Pension plans and systems, and the contemporary trends in their development are briefly introduced. Models of pension systems by three leading international organizations are reviewed, compared and commentated....

Many retirees face dramatic erosion of their savings due to outdated government rules, says a new C.D. Howe Institute report. In “Outliving Our Savings: Registered Retirement Income Funds Rules Need a Big Update,” authors Alexandre Laurin and William Robson urge the government to re-visit...

The 7th World Pensions Forum was held 22-23 March at the École Nationale des Beaux-Arts, a cradle of modern European culture. 120 pension executives and board members representing more than $10 trillion in combined wealth convened in Paris to discuss the regulatory and governance impact of...

Individuals often fund charitable gifts with their savings or retirement benefits. However, such benefits, other than those from a Roth individual retirement arrangement, are generally included in the individual's gross income when received, and may not be deductible from the donor's income....

Retirement income is not just about products. You need an underlying philosophy and sharpening the duties of trustee directors towards providing income in retirement would greatly assist funds in developing these. The super system needs to be able to measure success in the retirement phase and...

American households increasingly rely on employer-sponsored defined contribution retirement plans to fund consumption in retirement. I show that an important factor that impacts these plans is litigation risk. Using a new database of over 35,000 plans covering more than $5 trillion in assets, I...

This article compares expected pension default losses of employees and retirees before and after pension buyouts. The comparisons are made using a stochastic model calibrated with market data. The employees remain in the defined benefit (DB) pension plan while the retirees become annuity holders...