Global Pensions, May 20, 2009

Canada should reform its pension system by creating a hybrid model which resembles the one in place in the Netherlands, the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan president and chief executive says.  Jim Leech called for an overhaul of the Canadian pension system that would incorporate both defined benefit and defined contribution elements.

He said the Dutch model – which is an amalgamation of pension funds, merging smaller and larger funds– allowed the smaller funds to share their investment risk and reap the benefits of alternative asset investments.

Leech quoted a report by the US National Institute on Retirement Security which found the overall cost to employers and their workers was 45% lower for DB plans than it was for DC plans.

Read the full article here.