Sustainable investment has reached the main stage. So much so, that “ESG” has become a set of talking points for Republican hopefuls in the early stages of the US presidential election. ESG is a beast of our making and one that will only get noisier. Read more from Will Martindale after this year’s PLSA Investment Conference in Edinburgh.
Is our employer covenant robust and sustainable enough? That’s a question trustees of defined benefit (DB) pension schemes in Ireland should be asking on a regular basis. While this question is always relevant to DB pension schemes, recent regulatory changes have guided trustees to look at it more closely going forward. Michael McElligott, Director, shares his thoughts.
Everyone’s chatting about ChatGPT and the march of Artificial Intelligence (AI). But what do these technology advancements mean for the pensions industry? Felix Mantz, Director at Cardano Advisory, who leads our AI initiatives, shares his insights.
As recently as last year, Scheme surpluses were not high on most Trustees’ agendas – something to be thought about in the distant future, should they arise. However, recent rapid rises in gilt yields has brought surpluses firmly onto today’s agenda.
This edition of Covenant Quarterly focuses on DEI in pension scheme boards. It also looked at the rising insolvency cases, the potential impact of collective defined contribution schemes and the 2023 Annual Funding Statement
Around the world, life expectancy has reached a record high. People are living longer than ever before – but they’re also retiring sooner, meaning that pensioners are collecting benefits for previously unimagined lengths of time.
With living to the age of a hundred and beyond becoming a realistic prospect for increasing numbers of people, it’s time to rethink our relationship with our future selves.
The importance of DEI in pension scheme trustee boards is gaining momentum. We recently held a roundtable event to discuss the topic in more detail and to explore the results from the DEI survey we conducted in partnership with mallowstreet.
The Annual Funding Statement appears to factor in some of the feedback on the draft Funding Code, providing more nuanced commentary on covenant and integrated risk management.
Emily Goodridge and Christopher Heritage summarise the key points here.
In line with expectations, the Bank of England once again raised interest rates on 23rd March. This is the 11th successive increase with rates now at their highest level since 2008 at 4.25%. The recent collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and the emergency purchase of its UK subsidiary by HSBC, not to mention the Credit Suisse turmoil, serve as a timely reminder that the impact of the rapid rise in interest rates globally has not yet been fully appreciated.
We recently commissioned research with Mallowstreet to look at the challenges and barriers to improving diversity, equality, and inclusion (DEI) across the pensions industry.
