CESifo DICE Report 2/2015 (Summer): Pensions and the Financial Crisis

Section: Forum – Pensions and the Financial Crisis

The recent economic and financial crisis has put additional pressure on many pension systems around the world which are already burdened by population ageing. The current economic environment with low interest rates has shaken confidence in funded pension systems in general and in defined contribution pension plans in particular. At the same time pay-as-you go systems are adversely affected by high unemployment rates and dramatic deteriorations in public deficits. These developments have given impulses to further reforms aimed at improving the sustainability of pension arrangements.