Tagged: PFRDA
NTH :: PF interest rate hiked to 8.8% for 2015-16 from existing 8.75%: Bandaru Dattatreya
The government on Tuesday increased interest rates on provident fund (PF) to 8.8 per cent for the ongoing financial year ended March 2016 from 8.75 per cent earlier.
By: FE Online | New Delhi | February 17, 2016 10:16 AM | FinancialExpress.com
EPFO provides the rate of interest from its earnings on investment on formal sector workers’ fund without any assistance from the government. (AP)
The government on Tuesday increased interest rates on provident fund (PF) to 8.8 per cent for the ongoing financial year ended March 2016 from 8.75 per cent earlier.
EPFO has been paying 8.75 per cent interest rate for the last two fiscals to its 5 crore organised sector subscribers.
“PF interest rate is hiked to 8.8 per cent for 2015-16 from existing 8.75 per cent,” said Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya on Tuesday. “We had last time given 8.75 per cent and this time, seeing the situation, we are declaring 8.8 per cent for the workers,” he told reporters after chairing the 211th meeting of the Central Board of Trustees (CBT) of the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO).
The trade unions had demanded that the interest rate be fixed at 8.90 per cent, the government had revised it to 8.80 per cent, he said, underlining the Centre’s commitment to the working class.
EPFO provides the rate of interest from its earnings on investment on formal sector workers’ fund without any assistance from the government. The income projection of the retirement fund body is upwards of Rs 34,844 crore for the current fiscal. At this, EPFO would not have any problem to raise the rates to even 9% considering that it would still have Rs 100-odd crore surplus.
Source : http://goo.gl/M5GRI6
NTH :: Finance Ministry to look into hiking equity investment proposal: PFRDA
The Finance Ministry will go through a proposal seeking a hike in the investment limit of pension funds by up to 50% and then refer the matter to an expert committee, PFRDA has said.
Sunday, 11 October 2015 – 11:58am IST | Place: New Delhi | Agency: PTI
The Finance Ministry will go through a proposal seeking a hike in the investment limit of pension funds by up to 50% and then refer the matter to an expert committee, PFRDA has said.
“We are discussing it. They (Finance Ministry) will go through it and then probably refer it to somebody (committee or expert group) to increase investment limit of pension fund into equity market,” PFRDA chairman Hemant G Contractor told PTI.
The Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority of India (PFRDA) has sought approval of Finance Ministry to raise the limit of government employees’ pension funds in the stock market up to 50%.
Currently, the pension funds under PFRDA is allowed to invest up to 15% of the corpus into stock market.
Contractor said state and central government employees should be allowed to invest more in equity market.
“They should also get the same exposure to the stock market as the employees of private sector get which is at 50%,” he added.
The raise in investment limit into equity market is one of the recommendations of the G N Bajpai committee stating the investment of pension funds into stocks market should be enhanced.
PFRDA had set up an expert panel under the chairmanship of ex-Sebi chief G N Bajpai to review investment guidelines for National Pension System (NPS) schemes in private sector.
Contractor said equity in the long run is always better performing than other instruments.
The Bajpai committee has recommended diversifying investment portfolio of NPS scheme into private equity and venture capital funds.
PFRDA regulates NPS which is subscribed by employees of both central and state governments, besides private institutions and unorganised sectors.
At present, NPS funds can be invested in government securities, corporate bonds and equities.
The Centre had introduced the New Pension System (NPS) in January 2004.
Total assets managed under NPS are about Rs 82,000 crore, while the private sector’s contribution is just Rs 5,000 crore.
Source : http://goo.gl/SQqiDy