In the coming years, all those involved in the Dutch pension reform will have to communicate a crystal-clear and honest story about the transition to a new pension contract. That is one of the lessons pension experts from the independent knowledge network Netspar have learned after analysing nine other countries that have previously undergone major pension reforms. Onno Steenbeek (EUR and APG) and Benne…

“Rising temperatures as a predictor of long-term equity return dynamics” Historical data contain little information about the impact of future climate change on investment portfolios. We therefore combined historical data with a theoretical model that describes how rising temperatures influence asset prices. Three types of investor were considered: agnostic (historical data only) dogmatic (theoretical model only) and holistic (historical data combined with model). We…

Netspar’s Accumulated Knowledge Plays a Vital Role in the New Pension System for Dutch Citizens The Netspar research network has been nominated for the 2021 Tlburg University Impact Award. The work of this independent pensions think tank has been essential for the new pension system, draft legislation for which was published in 2020. The new pension system being implemented between 2023 and 2027 will…

“Disaster leads to long-term risk aversion for younger people and hence potential pension loss” This study used a well-known standard life cycle model to analyse the influence of a disaster like COVID-19 on the optimal consumption and investment strategy of different generations. The model assumes an individual without higher education, unmarried and no children, and that the disaster affects the risk tolerance. The ages…

Meer dan de helft van de pensioendeelnemers laat een vooringevulde keuze voor wat het is. Mensen met een beperkt financieel kennisniveau kiezen de voorgeselecteerde optie nog vaker. Dat blijkt uit onderzoek van de Autoriteit Financiële Markten (AFM) samen met Marike Knoef, hoogleraar empirische micro-economie aan de Universiteit Leiden en algemeen directeur van Netspar. De manier waarop en de omgeving waarin pensioendeelnemers keuzes voorgelegd krijgen,…

The new pension system that takes effect around 2026 is better attuned to the labor market than was previously the case. Still, lower-educated people, mothers with small jobs, migrants, people who perform repetitive tasks, and workers with physically demanding occupations are at risk. That is the conclusion of an exploratory survey for the longer term published today by a group of scientists and experts…

“The willingness to reallocate pension assets is highly heterogeneous” The Dutch pension system’s second pillar allows employees to reallocate old-age pension to surviving dependent’s pension within certain fiscal limits. This paper documents the outcomes of a stated preference experiment to measure the reallocation preferences of employees with a partner in the age group 55 to 65 years. This considered five hypothetical allocations ranging from…

“Increasing pressure to work overtime needs to be met with favourable working conditions” Substantial parts of the workforce in industrialised countries work long hours with increasing overtime. This helps to solve the labour shortages caused by early retirement and an ageing work population. However, a balance should be struck between job demands and the need for workers to remain employable until retirement. Therefore how…

The Netspar Foundation Board has appointed Annette Mosman to the Supervisory Board with effect from 1 May 2021. This appointment contributes to the connection between science, policy and pension providing that is so important to the Netspar research network.   Wouter Bos (Chairman of the Supervisory Board): “We are delighted with this reinforcement of our Supervisory Board. Annette Mosman has extensive experience in the…

Interview with Irene Ferrari (Ca’ Foscari University of Venice) In recent decades, most Western countries have dealt with different social security and pension reforms. The success of these reforms is largely related to the way in which people adjust their behavior, for example by working longer. “But knowledge is power: what you don’t know can’t help you,” said Irene Ferrari (Ca’ Foscari University of…