Managing Pension and Retirement Funds Effectively

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic is placing the funding, investment and covenant position of benefit pension schemes under huge pressure. Investment volatility and a sharp increase in deficits have coincided with the severe financial pressure the crisis is placing on many scheme sponsors across many companies and sectors.

Revenues have declined very rapidly given a collapse in trading volumes and in many cases forced the suspension of business operations.

For many scheme trustees and their sponsors, the need to ensure the continued viability of the business in the short term, and how to reconcile this with ongoing pension scheme funding commitments, will now be a critical issue.

In many cases, this is affecting all other stakeholders and creditors: employees are being retrenched. Creditors and landlords are accepting deferrals or reductions in payments, and companies are looking to lenders and the Government for additional credit or waivers for breaches of banking covenants.

Pension schemes cannot be exempt from this, as their funding commitments represent significant demands on cash that many companies cannot meet at present.

However, given the complexity of issues faced by pension schemes and the duties to which scheme trustees are subject, the pension scheme funding system does not easily adapt to a crisis of this speed and depth

• Addressing the Challenges facing the Pension Fund Industry

• Applying De-risking Strategies for your pension fund

• Understanding Corporate Governance and it’s important to pension fund industry?

• Surplus legislation, its impact and its Implications

• Trustee forum: what do current market conditions mean for you as a fiduciary?

• Addressing Trustees key duties and powers as prescribed by the Fund Rules, regulations and legislation

• Monitoring and evaluation of pension funds: reviewing the Service Legal Agreement (SLAs)

• How surplus returns should affect Employee Benefit Plans

• Innovation in the pension and retirement fund Industry