Durigon: 'The framework law on pension funds is 20 years old, it needs an overhaul'
Before the end of the year, the undersecretary for labour expects to push through changes regarding severance pay, merging of pension funds and Ltc policies
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Key points
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Having large assets allows for huge economies of scale and greater bargaining power vis-à-vis management companies.
It is true that the number of Italian pension funds has fallen sharply since 1999: 739 against the current 291. The problem, however, is the money under management. An example: in 2024 seven negotiated funds could allocate resources of around 44 billion euro to benefits; for the other 26 negotiated funds this same budget item last year was just 30 billion. And the negotiated funds are the best placed.
On the other hand, it is Covip itself that underlines this phenomenon on page 17 of its latest report: 'Small and very small forms remain numerous: those with resources of less than EUR 25 million number 94, for a total amount of EUR 0.5 billion'.
Eiopa and performance
Moreover, Eiopa, the European industry authority, pointed out in a report in 2023 that Spain, the Netherlands and Italy are the European countries with the largest number of pension schemes. Larger asset sizes and leaner structures would, on the other hand, further reduce costs and improve results.
However, market trends have also weighed on performance: 'The costs of negotiated funds are already very low,' says Paolo Pellegrini, deputy general manager of Mefop. 'I don't think it is a question of size and cost that weighs on performance. Instead, I think that the market crisis of 2022 will still take time to bring performance in line with expected returns'.
