NBFIRA stirs up hornet's nest with pension funds

In a move that potentially involves P23.5 billion, the Non-Bank Financial Institutions Regulatory Authority (NBFIRA) has stirred up a hornet's nest in proposals that will require pension funds to return and invest home offshore assets by 2030.

The proposals entail amending the Pensions and Provident Act to require a maximum of 70 percent of pension fund assets to be invested locally and the balance offshore by 2030. At present, the Act requires fund managers to invest a maximum of 30 percent of their pension fund portfolios domestically and the balance offshore.