Private pensions series : institutions and methods.

Private pensions are long-term contracts that comprise a sizeable share of workers' income. Pensions operate in markets subject to potential failures stemming from asymmetric information, adverse selection and moral hazard. Government intervention is crucial to design regulations to protect the interests of participants, avoid systemic crises, and guarantee the financial and actuarial sustainability of the private pension system. Regulations have to be implemented by supervisory institutions, which must be insulated from political pressures – from either the government or the pension industry – and endowed with reasonable resources and enforcement capacities. Supervisory agencies' procedures for market engagement should be constantly improved and updated to follow market dynamics and ensure compliance with regulations. Institutional structures and methods vary widely throughout the world and this is the first book intended to analyse and compare international experiences on these issues.This volume offers detailed and comparable information on the supervisory agencies, institutional design and methods in over 40 countries in the OECD area, Latin America, Eastern Europe and Southeast Asia. It is a valuable and practical contribution for policy makers who wish to benefit from pension supervision experiences across countries.