The traditional aim for the defined contribution pension industry has been helping plan members save for retirement, but as the nature of employment, plan design, investment choice and member engagement evolves, that objective is changing to financial wellness. “The world has changed significantly since the defined contribution business emerged,” said Marc-Antoine Morin, assistant vice-president of […]
While a third of Canadians are very or extremely confident they’ll be able to retire at the age they want to, around 40 per cent are somewhat confident and a fifth say they don’t think they’ll be able to retire at all, according to MFS Investment Management’s 2022 global retirement survey. “Those stats for the […]
Financial stress is impacting Canadians’ mental and physical health, as well as decisions related to their pension plans, said Matt Davison, Western University’s dean of science and principal researcher, during a session at Benefits Canada‘s 2023 DC Plan Summit. In an analysis of the National Payroll Institute’s annual survey, Western’s financial wellness lab found respondents’ financial perspectives […]
While McGill University has factored decumulation into its pension plan for decades, the plan sponsor is continually fine tuning these strategies for members, said John D’Agata, the university’s director of pension and benefits, during a session at Benefits Canada‘s 2023 DC Plan Summit. McGill’s pension plan has more than $1.5 billion in assets and more than 9,500 […]
While there’s a lot of noise and confusion around environmental, social and governance factors, it comes down to delivering value for investors in terms of better risk-adjusted returns, said Aaron White, CIBC Asset Management Inc.’s vice-president of sustainable investments, during a session at Benefits Canada‘s 2023 DC Plan Summit. Part of the confusion around the topic, he […]
Factors such as population demographics, productivity and geopolitics impact economic growth and, by extension, the retirement outcomes of defined contribution pension plan members over longer-term time horizons, said Jon Knowles, senior investment analyst at Fidelity Canada Institutional, during a session at Benefits Canada‘s 2023 DC Plan Summit. Ageing populations have traditionally been viewed as a dis-inflationary force due […]
Even though it sounds obvious, maximizing retirement income and making it last for life isn’t what drives most retirees when it comes to making decisions — which is contributing to the challenges around decumulation, said Fred Vettese, an author and pension expert, during Benefits Canada‘s 2023 Defined Contribution Plan Summit. “The hurdles we have to […]
Mitigating longevity risk is key to solving the decumulation challenge, said Pat Leo, Purpose Investments Inc.’s vice-president of longevity retirement solutions, during a session at Benefits Canada‘s 2023 DC Plan Summit. Referring to a recent survey, he noted defined contribution pension plan members were most concerned about market and sequence risks, while underestimating the impact of longevity risk. […]
With eight billion people consuming the planet’s resources, assets such as clean energy and sustainable agriculture are becoming increasingly important to institutional investors, said John Cook, senior vice-president, portfolio manager and co-lead of the Greenchip team at Mackenzie Investments, during a session at Benefits Canada‘s 2023 DC Plan Summit. Each year, it takes roughly 13.5 billion tons […]
With multiple generations in Canada’s diverse labour force, each generation has distinct needs and expectations, with millennials, in particular, creating increasing challenges for plan sponsors. The age group is comfortable talking about finances, but they aren’t saving for retirement, said Maria-José Perea, vice-president of product innovation in group retirement savings at Desjardins Insurance, during Benefits […]