This paper compares the different approaches of Singapore, Thailand, Hong Kong, and China with respect to how they manage their respective defined contribution, individual retirement account systems. The four cases illustrate important differences in terms of some of the key issues in design of...

The topic of managing fiscal risks arising from public-private partnerships is receiving increased attention as more governments turn toward this type of financing for large infrastructure projects. Governments can manage balance sheet exposure to public-private partnerships by quantifying and...

The insurance sector can play a critical role in financial and economic development. By reducing uncertainty and the impact of large losses, the sector can encourage new investments, innovation, and competition. As financial intermediaries with long investment horizons, insurance companies can...

Practitioners from different disciplines use different meanings and concepts of vulnerability, which, in turn, have led to diverse methods of measuring it. This paper presents a selective review of the literature from several disciplines to examine how they define and measure vulnerability. The...

In the context of a serious financial, and legal crisis, Argentina reformed its pension system in 1994, when a multi-pillar model with a funded scheme was introduced, and first pillar parameters, as minimum age and vesting requirements were tightened. The new system has a significant first...

This report provides a set of preliminary hypotheses and exploratory econometric testing to explain low rates of participation in reformed social security systems, with special emphasis on two Latin American countries. The hypotheses claim that the working poor and self-employed continue to have...

Public pension programmes in Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries are difficulties. With aging populations, and declining participation of working age men in paid work, existing pension arrangements are likely to be unsustainable in the future in many of the...

This paper explores the appropriate development of policy towards mandatory, retirement income streams within this broad framework, paying particular attention to the economic environments relevant to developing economies. After a review of existing practices, numerical simulation techniques are...

Funded mandatory pension systems based on individual accounts are spreading around the world. With the maturation of those systems, regulating the withdrawal of retirement savings will become increasingly important. Government regulation of withdrawals should mandate the purchase of...

Before the late 1970s, U.S. savings and loan institutions (S&Ls) were primarily mutually-owned institutions with limited management capabilities, limited investment options, and virtually unlimited interest rate exposure. The industry was closely tied to real estate so conflicts of interest and...