Committee on the Global Financial System: CGFS Papers

Committee on the Global Financial System CGFS Papers No 44 Fixed income strategies of insurance companies and pension funds Report submitted by a Working Group established by the Committee on the Global Financial System This Working Group was chaired by Peter Praet, Member of the European Central Bank’s Executive Board July 2011 JEL Classification: G22, G23, G28, M4 Copies of publications are available from: Bank for International Settlements Communications CH-4002 Basel, Switzerland E-mail: publications@bis.org Fax: +41 61 280 9100 and +41 61 280 8100 This publication is available on the BIS website (www.bis.org). © Bank for International Settlements 2011. All rights reserved. Brief excerpts may be reproduced or translated provided the source is cited. ISBN 92-9131-880-9 (print) ISBN 92-9197-880-9 (online) Preface In November 2010, the Committee on the Global Financial System (CGFS) established a Working Group to examine how insurance companies and pension funds are being affected by forthcoming accounting and regulatory changes in the current low-interest rate environment, and to investigate possible implications of changes in their investment strategies for the financial system. Over the coming years, accounting and regulatory changes could lead to reallocations of funding across financial instruments and sectors and encourage greater use of derivatives. The changes could also make it more difficult for insurance companies and pension funds to play their traditional role as global providers of long-term risk capital and accelerate the shifting of risks to households. The Working Group was chaired by Peter Praet of the National Bank of Belgium, now a Member of the European Central Bank’s Executive Board. Among other sources, the report draws on industry input obtained through roundtable discussions and bilateral interviews with insurance companies and pension funds. The report was presented to central bank Governors at the Global Economy Meeting in June 2011, where it received endorsement for publication. We hope that the central bank perspective adopted in this report helps to inform current debates on international accounting and regulatory changes by placing institutional investing in a broader financial system context. Mark Carney Chairman, Committee on the Global Financial System Governor, Bank of Canada CGFS – Fixed income strategies of insurance companies and pension funds iii ... - tailieumienphi.vn