Aon International Retirement Monthly Newsletter – May 2021

This month we bring you new material on a variety of different topics including a number of wellbeing reports that have been carried out around the world (including financial wellbeing aspects), and papers covering the importance of cyber security and what it means for pension plans. We are also running a number surveys including a global survey on responsible investing and a local French survey on supplementary pensions.

The focus of our next session in the International Retirement Webinar series will be Germany on 9 June where we will discuss a range of topics covering the retirement landscape. In previous months we have focussed on Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Click here to register and click here to watch previous webinars.

If you have any feedback or if there if something you'd like to hear more of then please let us know.

From Colin Haines, Partner, International Retirement & Investment

WEBINARS AND THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

Global

Responsible Investment Survey
ESG investing is high on the agenda for institutional investors around the world and is set to go higher still. The impact of ESG megatrends on the global economy and societies is more widely recognised; so too are the challenges and opportunities they present. However, there continues to be wide-ranging and differing views and attitudes towards responsible investing. Understanding these - and how the responsible investment landscape is changing - is a powerful first step for investors seeking consensus across their investment boards and committees. Click here to participate in the survey!

2021 Global Wellbeing Survey Results
Aon asked 1,648 companies across 41 countries how they are addressing wellbeing including saving for retirement and the tangible impact that a wellbeing program has on their business performance. The survey’s results explore the direct link between employee wellbeing and business performance and will shine a light on the impact that happy, healthy employees can have. Click here to download the full report.

Cyber threats to corporate pension schemes
The threats that cyber incidents pose to pension schemes have gone from unrecognised to unmissable in just a few years. Managing cyber risk is now an important issue for pension schemes, especially given new rules and guidelines on risk management in many markets eg EU IORP Directive. When COVID-19 hit in 2020, schemes faced the twin challenges of increased cyber attacks and more of their scheme operations moving online. This report shares previously unavailable data on the extent of cyber controls and governance that trustees have in place and this second report covers more general cyber security risks and what they mean for businesses.

United Kingdom

Assessing your financial wellbeing provision - survey
This short survey aims to look at your current financial wellbeing arrangements and provide you with a benchmark of where your provision stands in relation to others, help identify any gaps in your provision and advise on how to make the best of your financial wellbeing offering to employees. Click here to participate.

DC pension and financial wellbeing employee research 2021
The resulting report – which also draws on wider Aon and external research as well as the views of Aon's DC experts – provides an insight into the current financial position and pension planning of the UK's employees. Some of the headline findings may be surprising or even shocking and should not be ignored.

EMEA (excl. UK)

Ireland: IORP II Directive - New era dawns for Ireland’s pension landscape
The Irish Government announced on 27th April 2021 that regulations transposing the IORP II Directive into Irish pensions legislation had been signed by the Minister for Social Protection, Heather Humphreys T.D. Directive is the most significant piece of pensions legislation published in Ireland in over 30 years. It is expected that it will have a significant impact on the governance of Irish defined benefit and defined contribution pension schemes, with significant work being required of sponsoring employers and trustees to achieve compliance. Click here to read a Blog from Rachael Ingle, CEO Aon Retirement & Investment, Ireland

France: New Defined Benefit Plan, a must-have in executive compensation? - survey
The compliance of French DB Plans with European legislation has underlined the importance of defined benefit plans in top executive remuneration. In the wake of the new directive, these pension plans are likely to play an even more important role in top executive remuneration packages. The survey looks to gather information on what companies currently offer and how that might change. Click here to participate.

Switzerland: International Accounting – Assumption Update
The results of Aon Switzerland’s annual survey of accounting assumptions used at 2020 year-end are now available. The update not only covers the detailed findings of this most recent edition, but also to discusses the general impact of the new 2020 BVG/LPP tables on accounting liabilities along with key considerations to keep in mind for the upcoming year-end disclosure process. Click here to read the full article.

More content:
Here are some pieces you may have missed last month:

Do not forget to view Aon’s International Retirement & Investment website and stay updated!

APAC

Singapore: 2021 Trends in Retirement & Financial Wellbeing
The Aon Singapore 2021 Trends in Retirement & Financial Wellbeing study is designed to help employers, especially those without access to the CPF, identify opportunities in their retirement and financial wellbeing program offerings to ultimately improve employee engagement, resilience and overall wellbeing. Organisations in Singapore across all sectors with employee populations ranging from five to over 4,000 took part in this study. Click here to view the key findings.

Thailand: Developments to the National Pension Fund 2021
Like other Asian countries, Thailand faces demographic changes that see the nation age rapidly and threaten its retirement system. On March 30, 2021, the Cabinet approved in principle the idea of setting up the National Pension Fund (NPF). The government is hoping the NPF scheme might help ease government expenditure on old-age health care as well as strengthen the retirement safety net of the people. Click here to learn how the scheme will reduce the effect of Thailand's aging population.

The One Brief: How Employee Financial Wellbeing Affects Your Bottom Line
The coronavirus pandemic has meant unprecedented challenges and uncertainty for the vast majority of the world. Confronted with concerns about their health and safety, many people self-isolated at home, wondering how long the pandemic could possibly last. This article explores employees' main concerns surrounding long-term savings, as well as ways of mitigating the impact these concerns have on performance and productivity.

United States and Canada

U.S. Pension Risk Transfer Annuity Settlement Market Update
The report discusses the activity over 2020 and covers wider themes such as trends in the marketplace, increased interest from insurers, pricing results from 2020 transactions and considerations when preparing for a transaction. Click here for the report. (FYI Our latest report covering the UK market can be found here).

Lump Sum Windows | Emerging Trends and New Opportunities Amidst a Pandemic
New rules expanded lump sum window eligibility for current employees in 2020. In this paper, we outline this new strategy and Aon's experience of implementing lump sum windows during a pandemic. Click here for the paper.

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY

International Retirement Webinar Series
Join Aon's International Retirement & Investment team to hear insights on local market developments around the world. Each webinar will help those responsible for governing, managing and overseeing retirement plans to understand new local retirement topics and key changes in local legislation. Most recent webinars have included Australia, New Zealand and Canada and on 9 June 2021 the focus will be on Germany. Click here to register and click here to watch previous webinars

Aon’s Virtual DC Live Week: Keeping on track in challenging times
The Aon DC Live week will bring you the latest thinking and thought leadership, including findings from the 2021 DC Member and Financial Wellbeing Survey. Sessions will take place between Monday the 14 June and Thursday the 17 June 2021. View the full agenda here and register to attend here.

2021 Benefit Trends Survey Results (Pharma, Life Sciences and Health)
Join Aon's webinar on 1 June to discover key finding and insights from Aon's 2021 Benefit Trends Survey results, as well as key sector retirement themes and best benefit practices of other top organisations from the Pharma, Life Sciences and Health sector. Click here to register.

2021 WEBINAR RECORDINGS

For additional information and other international retirement queries, please contact us.