European Retirement Week, taking place annually in the last week of November, provides a platform for a wide range of stakeholders to debate the future of pensions in Europe and raise citizens’ awareness of the need to save for retirement and achieve pension adequacy.

This year, the European Retirement Week will be held from 25-29 November 2024. As part of the week’s activities, on 28 November BETTER FINANCE will host an insightful and forward-thinking conference titled “Future-Proofing Pensions: Creating Sustainable and Adequate Private Retirement Systems in Europe.”

This event will bring together leading experts, policymakers, and industry leaders to discuss the future of private retirement systems in Europe, with a focus on sustainability and adequacy.

For further information, refer to the programme below.

Date | 28 November 2024  | Venue | Hanse Representation Office to the EU

Programme

08:30 | Registration and Coffee

09:00 | Welcome Speech

Andreas Dressel, Minister of Finance, Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg

09:05 | Introduction

Aleksandra Mączyńska, Managing Director, BETTER FINANCE

09:10 | Keynote Address

Jan Ceyssens, Head of Capital Markets Union Unit, DG FISMA, European Commission

09:30 | Panel 1: Golden Years on a Green Planet: Maximising Financial and Environmental Returns Through Pension Investments  

Introduction | Fausto Parente, Executive Director of the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA)

Moderator | Josina Kamerling, Head of Regulatory Outreach EMEA, CFA Institute

Panellists:

Tilman Lueder, Head of Insurance & Pensions Unit, Directorate-General for Financial Stability, Financial Services & CMU, European Commission
Alwin Oerlemans, Head of Product Management, APG Asset Management
Fausto Parente, Executive Director of the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA)
Ján Šebo, Senior Researcher, Matej Bel University, Faculty of Economics, Chief Research Officer, Orange Envelope, and Economist, Government of the Slovak Republic

1. Dynamic asset allocation and life cycle: What obstacles to investing more pension savings into equity?   
2. Sustainability risk in pension investment: Climate-related financial risks and pension investments; How can saving for my pension impact climate change?
3. Can pan-EUropean pensions plans challenge the high cost-low performance status quo of European markets?

• 11:00 | Presentation: The Devastating Impact of Investment Fraud | Protecting EU Citizens’ Savings and How to Combat It

Zoltán Kormányos, General Counsel, BrokerChooser

11:15 | Coffee Break

11:45 | Presentation: Will you afford to retire? | The Real Return of Long-term and Pension Savings | 2024 Edition  

Sébastien Commain, Policy and Research Officer, BETTER FINANCE

12:15 | Panel 2: We All Want to Retire (Someday): Can Private Plans Secure Adequate Pensions for Everyone?  

Introduction | Dana Bachmann, Head of Unit for Social Protection, Social Rights and Inclusion, DG for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, European Commission
Moderator | Sébastien Commain, Policy and Research Officer, BETTER FINANCE

Panellists:

Dana Bachmann, Head of Unit for Social Protection, Social Rights and Inclusion, DG for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, European Commission
Gertrude Pils, Vice-Chair, PEKABE
Rick Redding, CFA, CEO, Index Industry Association (TBC)
Rainer Riess, Senior Advisor, Federation of European Securities Exchanges. (FESE)

Gender gap:   

1. How can we avoid earnings-based pension systems to reproduce and worsen in retirement the gender gap in labour income?   
2. What compensation can be offered to carers for the loss of pension rights resulting from care-related leave?  

Financial inclusion:   

1. How can we increase the coverage of occupational pensions in an uberized world?   
2. How to save for you pension when you live on minimum salary?

13:45 | Closing Speech

Aleksandra Mączyńska, Managing Director, BETTER FINANCE

14:00 | Networking Lunch

To attend the conference, please register below indicating whether you will be joining us in person or virtually. Please note that on-site seating is limited, while registration for the virtual conference is unlimited. For virtual attendance, you will receive an email ahead of the conference with a link to join the conference.

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