Pension fund

A pension fund, also known as a superannuation fund in some countries, is any program, fund, or scheme which provides retirement income.

Pension funds typically have large amounts of money to invest and are the major investors in listed and private companies. They are especially important to the stock market where large institutional investors dominate. The largest 300 pension funds collectively hold about USD$6 trillion in assets. In 2012, PricewaterhouseCoopers estimated that pension funds worldwide hold over $33.9 trillion in assets (and were expected to grow to more than $56 trillion by 2020), the largest for any category of institutional investor ahead of mutual funds, insurance companies, currency reserves, sovereign wealth funds, hedge funds, or private equity.

The Federal Old-age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund in the United States, which oversees $2.62 trillion in assets, is the world's largest public pension fund.

Classifications

Open vs. closed pension fund

Open pension funds support at least one pension plan with no restriction on membership while closed pension funds support only pension plans that are limited to certain employees.

Closed pension funds are further subclassified into:

  • Single employer pension funds
  • Multi-employer pension funds
  • Related member pension funds
  • Individual pension funds

Public vs. private pension funds

A public pension fund is one that is regulated under public sector law while a private pension fund is regulated under private sector law.

In certain countries, the distinction between public or government pension funds and private pension funds may be difficult to assess. In others, the distinction is made sharply in law, with very specific requirements for administration and investment. For example, local governmental bodies in the United States are subject to laws passed by the states in which those localities exist, and these laws include provisions such as defining classes of permitted investments and a minimum municipal obligation.

Largest pension funds

The following table lists largest pension funds by total assets by the SWF Institute.

Country Fund Assets US$ (in billions) Reporting
Period
Inception Origin
 United States Federal Old-age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund (Social Security) $2619 2022 1935 Taxation
 Australia Australian National Superannuation Scheme $2568 2022 1992 Employer & Employee Contribution
 Japan Government Pension Investment Fund $1790 2020 2006 Non-commodity
 Norway Government Pension Fund of Norway $1356 2021 1990 Oil
 United States Military Retirement Fund $1178 2022 1984 Employer Contribution
 United States Civil Service Retirement and Disability Fund $1003 2022 1920 Employer & Employee Contribution
 United States Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) $822 2021 1986 Employer & Employee Contribution
 Canada Canada Pension Plan and CPP Investment Board (CPPIB) $570 2022 1965 Non-commodity
 Netherlands Stichting Pensioenfonds ABP (ABP) $498 (€460) 2022 1922 Non-commodity
 South Korea National Pension Service (NPS) $462 2017 1988 Non-commodity
 Canada (Quebec) Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (The Caisse, or CDPQ) $402 2022 1965 Non-commodity
 United States (California) California Public Employees' Retirement System (CalPERS) $389 2020 1932 Non-commodity
 China National Social Security Fund $251 2015 2000 Non-commodity
 Singapore Central Provident Fund $348 2019 1955 Non-commodity
 Canada (Ontario) Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan (OTPP) $247 2022 1989 Non-commodity
 United States (California) California State Teachers' Retirement System (CalSTRS) $282 2021 1913 Non-commodity
 Malaysia Employees Provident Fund $226 2019 1951 Non-commodity
 Netherlands Stichting Pensioenfonds Zorg en Welzijn (PFZW, formerly PGGM) $183 (€162) 2022 1969 Non-commodity
 Chile AFP $160 2014 1980 Non-commodity
 India Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) $228 2019 1952 Employer & Employee Contribution
Russia Russia Russian National Wealth Fund $125 [38] 2020 2008 Oil
 Denmark Arbejdsmarkedets Tillægspension (ATP) $155 2020 1964 Employee Contribution
 Canada OMERS (Ontario) $124 2022 1962 Non-commodity
 South Africa Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF) $112 (ZAR1426b) 1996 Non-commodity
 Brazil Caixa de Previdencia dos Funcionários do Banco do Brasil (PREVI) $80 1904 Finance
 United States (Ohio) State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio (STRS Ohio) $79.8 2017 1919 Defined Benefit Pension
 France AGIRC - ARRCO $70 2015 2001 Non-commodity
 India National Pension System (NPS) $85 2021 2004 Non-commodity
 France Pensions Reserve Fund (France) (NPRF) $56 2001 Non-commodity
 Ireland National Pension Reserve Fund (NPRF) $30 2001 Non-commodity

By country

Australia

Government

Industry (not-for-profit)

Private

  • ANZ Australian Staff Superannuation Scheme (for employees of ANZ Bank)

Brazil

  • Aceprev
  • Baneses
  • Banesprev
  • Centrus
  • FAPES
  • Forluz
  • Funcef
  • Fundação Banrisul
  • Fundação CESP
  • Fundação Itaubanco
  • Petros
  • PREVI - Caixa de Previdência dos Funcionários do Banco do Brasil (the closed private pension fund for employees of the Brazilian federal government-owned bank)
  • Sistel
  • Valia

Canada

Government

Private

  • Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology Pension Plan (CAAT)
  • Boilermakers Pension Fund Trust
  • Labourers' Pension Fund of Central and Eastern Canada (LIUNA)
  • Teamsters Canadian Pension Plan
  • Telecommunication Workers Pension Plan
  • UFCW Canadian Pension Plan

Chile

China

Greece

Government

  • Public Employees Pension Fund

Private

  • TAPILTAT, the Fund for Mutual Assistance of the Employees of Ioniki Bank and Other Banks, the multi-employer auxiliary pension fund

Hong Kong

India

  • Employees' Provident Fund Organisation – a statutory social security body of the Government of India that administers a mandatory Provident Fund Scheme, Pension Scheme and a death/disability Insurance Scheme. Provident Fund is applicable for employees across all establishments (private as well as government, subject to criteria). EPFO is the largest social security organisation in India with assets well over 5 lakh crore (US$159 billion) as of 2014.
  • National Pension Scheme – a defined-contribution–based pension scheme launched by the Government of India open to all citizens of India on a voluntary basis and mandatory for the employees of central government (except Indian Armed Forces) who are appointed on or after 1 January 2004. Indian citizens between the age of 18 and 70 are eligible to join.

Iran

Japan

Malaysia

Morocco

Nepal

Netherlands

Norway

Oman

  • Social Protection Fund

Romania

The pension system in Romania is made of three pillars. One is the state pension (Pillar I – Mandatory), the second is a private mandatory pension where the state transfers a percentage of the contribution it collects for the public pension, and the third is an optional private pension (Pillar III – Voluntary).

The Financial Supervisory Authority – Private Pension is responsible for the supervision and regulation of the private pension system.

Saudi Arabia

Serbia

  • The pension system in Serbia is made of three pillars. One is the state pension (Pillar I – Mandatory), where every insured person is obliged to pay contributions from their paycheck, the second is a voluntary state pension, where an uninsured person is voluntarily included in state pension system, and the third is an optional private pension (Pillar III – Voluntary).
  • Pension and disability insurance fund

Singapore

Switzerland

Turkey

Government

Social Security Institution was established by the Social Security Institution Law No:5502 which was published in the Official Gazette No: 26173 dated 20.06.2006 and brings the Social Insurance Institution, General Directorate of Bağ-kur and General Directorate of Emekli Sandığı whose historical development are summarized above under a single roof in order to transfer five different retirement regimes which are civil servants, contractual paid workers, agricultural paid workers, self-employers and agricultural self-employers into a single retirement regime that will offer equal actuarial rights and obligations.

Private

  • Armed Forces Pension Fund

OYAK (Ordu Yardımlaşma Kurumu/Armed Forces Pension Fund) provides its members with "supplementary retirement benefits" apart from the official retirement fund, T.C.Emekli Sandığı/SSK, to which they are primarily affiliated.

In addition to the retirement benefit, OYAK pays "disability benefits" to the members on duty when they become partially or fully disabled as well as "death benefits" to the heirs of the deceased member if the death occurs during the member's subscription to the foundation.

OYAK is incorporated as a private entity under its own law subject to Turkish civic and commercial codes. OYAK, while fulfilling its legal duties, as set in the law, also provides its members with social services such as loans, home loans and retirement income systems.

The initial source of OYAK's funds is a compulsory 10 percent levy on the base salary of Turkey's 200,000 serving officers who, together with 25,000 current pensioners, make up OYAK's members.

Some other Turkish private pension funds:

  • YAPI ve KREDİ BANKASI A.Ş. Mensupları Yardım ve Emekli Sandığı Vakfı
  • AKBANK T.A.Ş. Mensupları Tekaüt Sandığı Vakfı
  • TÜRKİYE GARANTİ BANKASI A.Ş. Memur ve Müstahdemleri Emekli ve Yardım Sandığı Vakfı
  • TÜRKİYE ODALAR BORSALAR VE BİRLİK PERSONELİ SİGORTA VE EMEKLİ SANDIĞI VAKFI
  • TÜRKİYE İŞ BANKASI A.Ş. Mensupları Emekli Sandığı Vakfı

United States

In the United States, pension funds include schemes which result in a deferral of income by employees, even if retirement income provision is not the intent. The United States has $19.1 trillion in retirement and pension assets ($9.1 trillion in private funds, $10 trillion in public funds) as of 31 December 2016. The largest 200 pension funds accounted for $4.540 trillion as of 30 September 2009.

Government

See also


This page was last updated at 2024-02-02 16:23 UTC. Update now. View original page.

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