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The article is focused on the sustainability of pension systems and the factors that influence it. Due to the unfavourable demographic curve and low birth rate, there is a decrease in the economically active population that can finance future pensions. The aim of this article is to compare the individual pension models that we can distinguish within the OECD countries, and to identify factors that have a statistically significant effect on the sustainability of these pension models. Based on the information found, recommendations for the Czech pension system will be established. To achieve the goal, individual pension models are first compared and then a correlation and regression analysis is carried out to identify factors that influence the final ranking within the API and Mercer international pension indexes. Based on the results achieved, several recommendations for the Czech pension system were formulated. One of them is the division of the first pension pillar into a solidarity and meritorious part. Another recommendation is focused on the valorisation of pensions. Based on our analyses, it emerges as a significant influence of GDP growth on the evaluation of pension systems, therefore our next recommendation is to take GDP growth into account while determining the valorisation. Another step to make our national pension system more financially sustainable is linking the retirement age to life expectancy. This could also stabilise the ratio of working life to life in retirement.

The Chinese pension system is highly fragmented and decentralized, with governance standards, pension fund management practices, their regulation and supervision varying considerably both across the funded components of the Chinese pension system and across provinces. This paper describes the key components of the system, highlights the progress made to date and identifies remaining weaknesses, in regard to information disclosure, the governance framework and pension fund management standards.

This paper discusses the key sources of vulnerabilities for pension plans and insurance companies in light of the global financial crisis of 2008. It also discusses how these institutional investors transit shocks to the rest of the financial sector and economy. The crisis has re-ignited the policy debate on key issues such as: 1) the need for countercyclical funding and solvency rules; 2) the tradeoffs implied in marked based valuation rules; 3) the need to protect contributors towards retirement from excessive market volatility; 4) the need to strengthen group supervision for large complex financial institutions including insurance and pensions; and 5) the need to revisit the resolution and crisis management framework for insurance and pensions.

This paper provides the first empirical assessment of the impact of life expectancy assumptions on the liabilities of private U.S. defined benefit (DB) pension plans. Using detailed actuarial and financial information provided by the U.S. Department of Labor, we construct a longevity variable for each pension plan and then measure the impact of varying life expectancy assumptions across plans and over time on pension plan liabilities. The results indicate that each additional year of life expectancy increases pension liabilities by about 3 to 4 percent. This effect is not only statistically highly significant but also economically: each year of additional life expectancy would increase private U.S. DB pension plan liabilities by as much as 84 billion.

This paper assesses the sustainability of pension systems of New Member States of the European Union that have undergone the transition to a market economy and the establishment of a multi-pillar pension model. Investigating pension sustainability from a slightly different perspective, we apply the Mercer CFA Institute Global Pension Index methodology, whose sustainability sub-index measures indicators that have a significant influence on the likelihood that the current pension system will be able to provide benefits into the future. However, this methodology predefines the weights for each indicator, which can be limiting for countries that have large oscillations between indicators. To obtain a sustainability analysis without predefined weights, we apply data envelopment analysis (DEA) to calculate efficiency scores using sustainability indicators as inputs. Furthermore, since DEA generally allows each country to load on their strong indicators as much as possible, allowing thus for self-appraisal, we perform the analysis of the perturbations in the data and examine how these changes affect the overall relative positions of the countries in the set. Also, we explore the cross-efficiency approach to define peer-appraisal as a more objective efficiency score. As a final step, a comparison of all EU Member States provides an overall perspective.

The impact of good governance on investment management and performance is immense. Several key factors contribute to good governance within pension funds, appropriate governance structures; well-defined accountabilities, policies, and procedures; and suitable processes for the selection and operation of governing bodies and managing institutions. Not surprisingly, good governance requires leadership by individuals with the expertise, professionalism, and integrity to navigate a fund's direction and withstand pressures from multiple constituencies. In the current context of aging populations in many countries, fiscal burdens on pension funds are increasing. At the same time, the necessity of delivering on pension commitments in contributory schemes means that governance, transparency, and accountability should be of utmost importance to pension fund managers. With these concerns in mind, part three of this book provides useful perspectives from senior managers of public pension funds, international pension authorities, and multilateral institution representatives on the structures, policies, and processes that aim to support good governance. Principally reflecting on the characteristics that have been conducive to good governance, including reform measures undertaken, they also consider policy and investment management measures taken to effectively manage fiscal risks, including those that emerged from the financial crisis.

The paper discusses the limits to market-based risk transfer in the financial system and the implications for the management of systemic long-term financial risks. Financial instruments or markets to transfer and better manage these risks across institutions and sectors are, as yet, either nascent or nonexistent. As such, the paper investigates why these markets remain \"incomplete.\" It also explores a range of options by which policymakers may encourage the development of these markets as part of governments' role as a risk manager.

[...]of the analysis of sovereign funds of foreign countries in our country, scientific recommendations and practical recommendations for the development of the Fund for Reconstruction and Development was developed. According to his words, \"the managers of sovereign funds in economy whether they are Central banks or governments of countries, state reserves are changing from traditional management to sovereign wealth management. According to the Sovereign Wealth Funds Institute approach, the main criteria for evaluating the performance of sovereign funds are the level of openness, the profitableness of the investment portfolio and the size of the assets. According to experts, currently operating profit in the oil and gas industry is the highest rating and it will decrease during the next decades. [...]the Fund was formed firstly to resolve the effects of decrease in front of theprofits and mitigate the harmful effects of changes in oil prices.

This article applies a modified Multiple Streams Framework (MSF) to an in-depth case study of the contentious issue of integrating ethics into the Norwegian oil fund strategy. By exploring how ethical investment guidelines evolved from a discredited and allegedly unrealistic idea into policy consensus and, ultimately, a global exemplar, the study contributes to the literature in two ways. First, it contributes to the ongoing theoretical refinement of the MSF perspective by illustrating how the framework proves valuable in examining both agenda-setting and decision-making processes. Specifically, it confirms the relevance of a two-phase model for a more rigorous analysis of the decision-making process. Second, while prior literature defines the output of agenda-setting as a ready proposal, it is demonstrated that this outcome may not necessarily signify a fully developed policy proposal. To account for a broader range of scenarios, this article suggests redefining the output of the agenda-setting process as a policy commitment, rather than a worked-out proposal ready for negotiations in the political stream. Acknowledging the uncertainty and ambiguity in the decision-making process highlights the significance of developments in the problem and policy streams that past literature has not given due attention. Consequently, the article proposes a revised two-phase model to enhance the conceptualisation of decision-making within the MSF.