The Ontario government’s new funding framework for target-benefit plans will provide more flexibility for plan administrators and boards, says Domenic Barbiero, principal at Eckler Ltd. The proposed framework requires trustees to establish a number of policies, including funding, benefits, communications and overall governance. “This proposal is the second iteration of a proposal from the Ministry […]
Record levels of transactions in the U.K. and U.S. pension risk transfer markets in 2022 are carrying into the first half of 2023, according to a new report by the Legal & General Group. In the U.K., the report found an unprecedented acceleration in demand, driven by more defined benefit pension plans being closer to […]
An article on the most recent changes to the Canada Labour Code was the most-read story on BenefitsCanada.com over the last week. Here are the five most popular news stories of the week: How recent Canada Labour Code updates are impacting federally regulated employers Report finds fewer employees going above and beyond in their jobs Half of […]
Ontario-based defined benefit pension plans returned, on average, 0.7 per cent on their investments in the second quarter of 2023, according to a new report by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario. It found the positive return contributed to a small increase in the median projected solvency ratio, which increased to 116 per cent. […]
The funded position of a typical defined benefit pension plan increased on both a solvency and accounting basis during the month of June, according to the latest pension index from Telus Health. In June, the solvency of the average DB plan rose to 103.2 per cent, up from 101.4 per cent during the month of […]
The Association of Canadian Pension Management is urging the Ontario government to ensure its proposed rules for multi-employer target-benefit pension plans don’t undermine existing incentives that enable employers to create and maintain workplace pension plans. In an open letter, the ACPM said it believes the provision for adverse deviation will overly restrict the ability of MEPP trustees to manage […]
The current economic maelstrom, with its high inflation and interest rates, has left many institutional investors operating in uncharted territory — though not Rashid Maqsood, vice-president of treasury at electrical products distributor Rexel North America Inc. His career began in the late 1970s — almost a decade before central banks began setting inflation targets. “It’s […]
The Association of Canadian Pension Management is urging Retraite Québec to provide additional flexibility in the funding of municipal and university defined benefit pension plans. In an open letter, the ACPM requested flexibility to fund up to 100 per cent of amortization payments from the reserve, noting this change would allow for better management of financial risks […]
At the best of times, selecting an optimal asset mix for a defined benefit pension plan is challenging. The times of today are downright turbulent. Last year, inflation reached 8.1 per cent in Canada as a result of a prolonged period of government stimulus spending to manage the fallout of the coronavirus pandemic. In response […]
In 2022, the typical defined benefit pension plan achieved an investment return of roughly negative 12 per cent. However, due to dramatic increases in bond yields and a subsequent decrease in pension liabilities, many pension plans ended 2022 with the same — or better — solvency funded level that they had at the beginning of […]