Actuarial Balance Sheet Research Articles

Transforming the supplementary table on pension liabilities (Table 29) into an actuarial balance sheet

IMPACT For policy-makers, statisticians, public accountants, social security actuaries, public finance economists and other stakeholders, the regulation introduced by the EU regarding the disclosure of an accrued-to-date liability (ADL) table (Table 29) is a valuable first step in reporting pension liabilities. However, the information disclosed is incomplete and does not provide an indicator of solvency or sustainability. In addition, pensioners and those making contributions to pensions have no information regarding the security of their future benefits. In this timely article, the authors present a methodology to easily transform Table 29 into an actuarial balance sheet (ABS) and compile its associated income statement (IS). The ABS can be used to assess the solvency of pension schemes, whereas Table 29 cannot.

Actuarial balance sheet of cash flows in the context of restoration of the agricultural sector and integration to the EU

Introduction. The article examines the peculiarities of drawing up the third form of actuarial financial reporting in the context of increasing the investment attractiveness of Ukraine's agriculture and integration into the European Union. Domestic agribusiness needs comprehensive support, which is one of the state's priorities in the context of the implementation of the "Survival Strategy: Agricultural Sector 2022-2023" and includes security and long-term programs for the recovery of this sector. Reconstruction of the post-war economy of Ukraine requires adequate financing of agriculture in the context of ensuring food security of the country as a whole. An important source of increasing investment attractiveness is actuarial financial reporting, which, through the prism of its information content, is able to interest real and potential investors or other providers of capital. In this regard, financial reporting, the purpose, composition, principles of compilation, requirements for recognition and disclosure of its elements, which are defined in NP(S)BO 1 "General requirements for financial reporting", needs to be transformed into an actuarial one, which accordingly requires the development of a separate standard of NP (C)BO 3 "Actuarial reporting" at the national level in the future. Features of the structure of the actuarial cash balance report are outlined, which discloses information about free cash flow and cash flows from transactions with borrowers and shareholders. The author's method of transformation of the traditional cash flow report, typical form No. 3, into an actuarial one is proposed. The purpose of the article is to investigate the specifics of the transformation of the Cash Flow Report, type Form No. 3 in Actuarial cash flow balance, type Form No. 3-a on the example of a domestic agricultural enterprise. Method (methodology). Includes general scientific methods - elements of the theory of logic; methods of theoretical generalization and abstract science; methods of comparison and grouping; classification method. The results. As a result of the conducted research, elements of scientific novelty were obtained, which are as follows: a method of transformation of the Report on the movement of cash funds, type, was proposed. Form No. 3 in Actuarial cash flow balance, type Form No. 3-a on the basis of taking into account foreign experience; the peculiarities of the dichotomy of operational and financial activities in the actuarial balance of cash flows are outlined; cash flows for operations with borrowers and shareholders of the enterprise are delimited; the calculated amount of free cash flow was derived using the indirect method. The specified information content of the researched actuarial reporting form increases the interest of the external investor in the expediency of financial investments for the development of a specific subject of the agricultural sector. Therefore, the practical significance of the conducted research lies in the development of recommendations to ensure the recovery and comprehensive support of the agricultural sector of Ukraine in the conditions of martial law due to the active implementation of actuarial accounting and reporting at domestic agricultural enterprises, which will contribute to an objective assessment of the economic value of agribusiness when attracting external investments in development , liquidity analysis, financial planning and budgeting in the context of EU integration.

From ‘Table 29’ to the Actuarial Balance Sheet: Is It Really That Big a Leap?

EU regulations since 2017 have required all Member States to disclose their accrued-to-date pension liabilities (ADL) using a standard actuarial cost method and some common assumptions. This applies to both Social Security (SS) schemes and unfunded defined benefit (DB) schemes covering civil servants. These pension liabilities have to be disclosed in a supplementary table referred to as Table 29. An actuarial balance sheet (ABS) can be defined as a financial statement that lists a pension system's obligations to contributors and pensioners at a particular date, together with the amounts of the assets (financial and in particular those from contributions) that underwrite those commitments. The ABS can be used to assess the solvency of SS schemes, whereas Table 29 cannot. This paper develops a methodology to (easily) transform Table 29 into an ABS and compile its associated income statement (IS). To enable policymakers to better understand how the model would function, the paper also contains a country case study based on data from the most recently published Table 29 for Spain. According to our best estimate assumptions, it can be said that the Spanish pension system is partially insolvent because only part of the pension entitlements is backed up by assets, and that the system's sustainability has markedly deteriorated over the period 2015-2018.

Social Insurance Accounting for a Notional Defined Contribution Scheme Combining Retirement and Long-Term Care Benefits

This paper develops a social insurance accounting model for a notional defined contribution (NDC) scheme combining retirement and long-term care (LTC) contingencies. The procedure relies on standard double-entry bookkeeping and enables us to compile a “Swedish” type actuarial balance sheet (ABS) following a framework equivalent to an open group approach. This methodology is suitable for reporting the system’s solvency status and can show periodical changes in the system’s financial position by means of an income statement. The information underpinning the actuarial valuation is based on events and transactions that are verifiable at the valuation date, without considering expected future trends. The paper also contains an illustrative example to make it easier for policymakers to understand the main advantages and difficulties of our proposal. The policy conclusions stress the need to properly report social insurance benefits to enhance transparency and sustainability and to improve decision-making because it is in the public interest to do so.

Measuring and reporting the actuarial obligations of the Canada Pension Plan

AbstractThe processes used to assess the financial sustainability of the Canada Pension Plan (CPP) and the corresponding reporting are recognized internationally as “best practices”. In the context of the international and multi‐disciplinary debate about the most appropriate methodology for the measuring and reporting of social security assets and obligations, the experience and practices of Canada offer a number of important policy lessons. The article analyses the assets and obligations of the CPP using different actuarial balance sheet methodologies, i.e. open and closed group. It concludes that the balance sheets under the closed‐group with and without future benefit accruals methodologies do not reflect the nature of the partial funding approach of the CPP, whereby future contributions represent a major source of financing for future expenditures. As such, it is inappropriate to reach a conclusion regarding the Plan's financial sustainability considering only the asset shortfalls determined under the closed group with and without future accruals balance sheets. The article asserts that measuring the Plan's assets and obligations using the open‐group approach provides information that properly reflects how changing demographic and economic environments affect the long‐term sustainability of the CPP. In contrast, using the closed group without future accruals approach may provide incomplete or even misleading information. Finally, the article discusses approaches used to report the financial state of the CPP, including both actuarial and financial reporting. It highlights the comprehensive disclosures approach adopted for the purpose of CPP annual reports and the Public Accounts of Canada.

An actuarial balance sheet of the Swiss old‐age pension scheme

AbstractFollowing the recent update of the international System of National Accounts (2008 SNA), internationally comparable estimates of accrued‐to‐date pension liabilities (ADL) of unfunded social security pension schemes will soon be available in the supplementary table to the National Accounts. Against this background, this article analyzes the medium‐term sustainability of the Swiss old‐age pension scheme (Alters‐ und Hinterlassenenversicherung – AHV). This is achieved by estimating a “Swedish” actuarial balance sheet, which compares pension liabilities with the explicit and implicit assets of the pension scheme. Our results show that the current financing of the AHV is unsustainable, with about 30 per cent of the liabilities not backed by corresponding assets. In order to close this financing gap either the contribution rate should rise from 8.4 per cent to 12 per cent or all pension liabilities should be cut by about 38 per cent.

A Social Insurance Accounting for a Notional Defined Contribution Scheme Combining Retirement and Long-Term Care Benefits

This paper develops a social insurance accounting model for a notional defined contribution (NDC) scheme combining retirement and long-term care (LTC) contingencies. The procedure relies on standard double-entry bookkeeping and enables us to compile a “Swedish” type actuarial balance sheet (ABS) following a framework equivalent to an open group approach. This methodology is suitable for reporting the system’s solvency status and can show periodical changes in the system’s financial position by means of an income statement. The information underpinning the actuarial valuation is based on events and transactions that are verifiable at the valuation date, without considering expected future trends. The paper also contains an illustrative example to make it easier for policymakers to understand the main advantages and difficulties of our proposal. The policy conclusions stress the need to properly report social insurance benefits to enhance transparency and sustainability and to improve decision-making because it is in the public interest to do so.

A “Swedish” actuarial balance for a notional defined contribution pension scheme with disability and minimum pension benefits

AbstractThis article proposes a “Swedish” type actuarial balance sheet (ABS) for a notional defined contribution (NDC) scheme with disability and minimum pension benefits. The proposed ABS splits the pension system in two parts: the pure NDC part and the redistributive part, which includes the assets and liabilities originating from non‐contributory rights. The article contains a numerical example that sheds light on the real applicability of our proposal. The model has practical implications that could be of interest to policy‐makers, given that it integrates actuarial and social aspects of public pensions and discloses the real cost of redistribution through minimum pensions.

A 'Swedish' Actuarial Balance Sheet for a Notional Defined Contribution Pension Scheme with Disability and Retirement Benefits

This paper proposes a “Swedish” type actuarial balance sheet for a notional defined contribution scheme embedding disability insurance within the retirement pension system. The underlying framework supporting the actuarial balance relies on a multistate overlapping generations model that includes the so-called survivor dividend and a minimum pension benefit for both contingencies. The proposed ABS splits the system into two parts: the actuarial part (pure NDC) and the redistributive part, which includes the assets and liabilities originating from non-contributory rights. The paper also contains a numerical example that sheds light on the real applicability of our proposal and confirms that the model works reasonably well. The results obtained make sense and provide us with some useful values regarding the impact of introducing a minimum pension on the system's financial equilibrium. The model has practical implications that could be of interest to policy makers, given that it integrates actuarial and social aspects of public pensions and discloses the real cost of redistribution through minimum pensions.

AN ACTUARIAL BALANCE SHEET MODEL FOR DEFINED BENEFIT PAY-AS-YOU-GO PENSION SYSTEMS WITH DISABILITY AND RETIREMENT CONTINGENCIES

AbstractIn this paper, we develop a theoretical basis for drawing up a “Swedish” type actuarial balance sheet for a defined benefit pay-as-you-go (DB PAYG) scheme with retirement and disability benefits. Our model enables us to obtain the system's expected average turnover duration, measure the scheme's solvency and explore the phenomenon identified as “pension reclassification”, a widespread practice that masks the system's real status unless further pension information becomes available. The model is clearly linked to actuarial practice in social security and gives partial support to the practical adaptation of Swedish methodology carried out by OSFI (2012) in applying the concept of the contribution asset to the Canadian Pension Plan (CPP) balance sheet, which includes disability and survivor benefits.

Should a Survivorship Dividend Be Included in Notional Defined Contribution Accounts (NDCs)?

The aim of this paper is to analyse the role of the survivor dividend in notional defined contribution (NDC) pension schemes. With this aim in mind, we first extend the model developed by Boado-Penas & Vidal-Melia (2014) by allowing for changes in the growth of the active population. We then compute the effect of the survivor dividend on the relationship between the individual’s internal rate of return for contributors who reach retirement age and the system’s internal rate of return. Finally we develop the main entries to include on the system's actuarial balance sheet. The model endorses the idea that the survivor dividend has a strong basis for enabling the NDC scheme to achieve financial equilibrium and that not including the dividend is a non-transparent way of compensating for increases in longevity and/or legacy costs from old pension systems. We also find that the average effect of the dividend remains unchanged for any constant annual rate of population growth, that contributors who reach retirement age always get a higher return than the system does, and that population growth enables cohorts with more years of contributions to benefit to a greater extent from the dividend effect.

Actuarial balance sheets as a tool to assess the sustainability of social security pension systems

AbstractThe choice of the methodology used to produce a social security pension system's balance sheet is mainly determined by the system's financing approach. In this article, it is shown using the example of the Canada Pension Plan that if the assessment of the financial sustainability of a pay‐as‐you‐go or partially funded system is done through the means of an actuarial balance sheet, then the methodology used should take into account future contributions of current and future participants. The balance sheets produced using the open group approach, as well as methodologies used in United States and Sweden, are discussed.

An Actuarial Balance Model for DB PAYG Pension Systems with Disability and Retirement Contingencies

In this paper we develop a theoretical basis for drawing up a “Swedish” type actuarial balance sheet for a defined benefit pay-as-you-go (DB PAYG) scheme with retirement and disability benefits. Our model enables us to obtain the system's expected average turnover duration, measure the scheme's solvency and explore the phenomenon identified as “pension reclassification”, a widespread practice that masks the system's real status unless further pension information becomes available. The model is clearly linked to actuarial practice in social security and gives partial support to the practical adaptation of Swedish methodology carried out by OSFI (2012) in applying the concept of the contribution asset to the Canadian Pension Plan (CPP) balance sheet, which includes disability and survivor benefits.

Automatic Balance Mechanisms in Pay-As-You-Go Pension Systems

The aim of this paper is twofold: to show the usefulness of automatic balance mechanisms (ABMs) and to explore the issue of introducing an ABM into the Spanish state contributory retirement pension system. With this in mind, we define the concept of the ABM and carry out an analysis of that existing in Sweden, Canada, Germany, Japan and Finland. We also present an indicator of the Spanish system's solvency which emerges from the actuarial balance sheet, and simulates the effect that certain changes in the parameters of the present system would have on solvency, showing the direction that could be taken if the mechanism were to be introduced in Spain. A comparison between the official balance sheet for the Swedish notional account system and our balance sheet for the Spanish contributory pension system is also provided.

Automatic Balance Mechanisms in Pay-as-You-Go Pension Systems

This paper shows the usefulness of the automatic balance mechanisms (ABMs) and explores the issue of introducing an ABM into the Spanish public contributory retirement pension system. We define the concept of the automatic balance mechanism and carry out an analysis of those existing in Sweden, Canada, Germany, Japan and Finland. We also present an indicator of the Spanish system's solvency which emerges from the actuarial balance sheet, and simulate the effect that certain changes in the parameters of the present system would have on solvency, showing the direction that could be taken if the mechanism were to be introduced in Spain. The main conclusion reached is that, given the system's situation of (in)solvency, the introduction of an automatic mechanism is highly recommended in order to set the system on the road to long-term financial solvency, neutralise the effects of ageing, changes in socio-economic conditions and the continuing increase in longevity, and to reduce populism in pension policy.

The Actuarial Balance Sheet for Pay‐As‐You‐Go Finance: Solvency Indicators for Spain and Sweden*

AbstractThis paper provides the first estimate of the actuarial balance of the Spanish contributory pension system for the old‐age contingency, based on official data. The main accounting entries are developed from the principles of double‐entry bookkeeping. The novel entry in the balance sheet, entitled the ‘contribution asset’ or ‘hidden asset’, is at the centre of the theoretical discussion. A comparison between the official balance sheet for the Swedish notional account system and our balance sheet for the Spanish contributory pension system is also provided. The main finding is that the Spanish pension system has an insolvency rate of 31.4 per cent. The policy implication is that unless current legislation is reformed, Spanish taxpayers (the plan sponsor) should count on making transfers to the pension system with a present discounted value of 31.4 per cent of current liabilities. Moreover, a comparison of the consecutive balance sheets for 2001‐06 shows that the degree of insolvency is growing over time, even though the cash‐flow outcome has improved over the same period. Taking steps to reverse this trend and restore solvency is in Spanish taxpayers' interest, and possibly also in the interest of those in the European Union who recognise that there is a chance that they may have to support the Spanish budget in the future.