Description: This paper takes the position that the most significant impact of pension funds on the U.K. economy relates to the costs imposed by extreme mismatching between their financial assets and liabilities. From Current Pension Actuarial Practice in Light of Financial Economics Symposium, M-RS04-1.

Description: The objective of this study is to measure the amount of surplus which would be needed by a pension plan to account for the risk of insufficient return on assets. From Current Pension Actuarial Practice In Light of Financial Economics Symposium, M-RS04-1.

Description: This paper takes the position that the U.K. actuarial profession has still not come to a single view on financial economics, and the major divisions that remain continue to hamstring its policy development. From Current Pension Actuarial Practice in Light of Financial Economics Symposium, M-RS04-1.

Description: This paper discusses the level of reserve funds that a pension plan should maintain to protect itself from a downturn in the financial markets. From Current Pension Actuarial Practice in Light of Financial Economics Symposium, M-RS04-1.

Description: The intent of this paper is to establish a correct balance between company interests in investing pension fund assets in the company's own stock and the prudent requirements of good risk management. From Current Pension Actuarial Practice in Light of Financial Economics Symposium, M-RS04-1.

Description: This paper considers the pension plan as part of the capital structure of the sponsoring employer, enabling lessons from financial theory concerning capital structure to be used to answer the questions about what assets a pension fund should hold. From Current Pension Actuarial Practice in Light of Financial Economics Symposium, M-RS04-1.

Description: Interest rate changes and volatile equity returns have contributed to significant funding and expense volatility for defined benefit plans in recent years. This paper will describe the design of an option contract with payouts that are tied to the combined impact of interest rates and investment returns on the funding level of a defined benefit pension plan. Current derivatives used by plan sponsors can limit exposure to one of these risks; however, a derivative that combines these risks may provide more targeted protection to a plan sponsor at lower cost. This paper discusses several considerations in designing such a derivative. It will also briefly discuss pricing of the option. Finally, the difference in potential outcomes between plan funding with and without option ownership will be demonstrated. As an outcome of the design work, a new way to visualize pension risk that may be useful in sponsor accounting disclosures will be shown.

Description: This paper examines the discrepancy that seems to exist between classical financial theory and the widely adopted portfolio selection theory, and proposes that the roles of agents and the interests of corporate insiders need also to be considered. From Current Pension Actuarial Practice in Light of Financial Economics Symposium, M-RS04-1.

Description: This paper examines the funding expectations of the three primary stakeholders in the pension system: plan sponsors, taxpayers, and workers. From The Future of Pension Plan Funding and Disclosure Monograph, M-RS05-1.

Description: This paper takes the position that a retirement plan should not be evaluated differently than other financial arrangements, and, therefore, its value should be measured through a utility function. The paper then suggests a method of incorporating utility theory into the retirement plan design model. From Current Pension Actuarial Practice in Light of Financial Economics Symposium, M-RS04-1.