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No adjustment of existing pensions for inflation

The Pension Fund Board decides annually on any possible adjustments to current pensions to take account of inflation. The Board does so in line with the financial situation of the Pension Fund Swiss Re based on the provisional monthly closing as of      31 October and on the inflation trend in past years.

With average annual inflation below 0.7% over the past ten years, the Pension Fund Board at its meeting of 9 December 2024 decided against adjusting current pensions in line with inflation in 2025. A BVG conformity calculation is performed to ensure that the BVG minimum requirements are met at all times.

One-off bonus pension payment

A prudent approach to managing the capital of insureds and pension beneficiaries is the highest priority for the Board of the Pension Fund Swiss Re. The Board ensures that the Pension Fund continues to meet its long-term pension obligations and that even in the event of sudden turbulence or downward movements in capital markets, the Pension Fund retains sufficient financial reserves to have maximum room for manoeuvre should a crisis arise. At the same time, the Pension Fund Board is deeply committed to reducing the unintended redistribution from insureds (meaning active members) to retirement pension beneficiaries (retired members) in past years.

On the basis of its sound financial health, the Pension Fund was able to fully offset the unintended intergenerational transfer by 31 December 2024. With that, the redistribution from insureds to retirement pension beneficiaries in recent years has been fully redressed.

With intergenerational fairness achieved, the Pension Fund Swiss Re now has the unprecedented opportunity to share its strong financial performance with all its retirement pension beneficiaries. The Pension Fund Board used this opportunity and decided at its meeting of 9 December 2024 to grant all its retirement pension beneficiaries a one-off bonus pension payment calculated according to their retirement date.

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Further Information

2024

Adjustment of existing pensions for inflation

The Pension Fund Board decides annually on any possible adjustments to current pensions to take account of inflation, in line with the financial situation of the Pension Fund Swiss Re based on the provisional monthly closing as of 31 October 2023 and on price developments.
The Pension Fund Board took note of the provisional monthly closing as of 31 October 2023 at its meeting of 7 December 2023. As of 31 October 2023, there are no free funds.
The Pension Fund Board keeps a very close eye on the financial performance of the Pension Fund Swiss Re and will take every care in considering how any future free funds are to be allocated. In any such allocation, the Board's first priority is redressing the unequal treatment of insureds before considering an allocation of free funds to pension beneficiaries.
Since 2011, the interest accrued to insureds' retirement savings capital has trailed the accumulated technical costs of financing and securing current pensions. The cumulative interest gap to the disadvantage of insureds is provisionally to about 18% as of year-end 2023. In other words, insureds earned estimated 18 percentage points less interest on their capital than did pension beneficiaries over the same period.
Accordingly, current pensions, such as retirement pensions, disability pensions, spouse's pensions, child's pensions and orphans' pensions, will not be adjusted with effect from     1 April 2024. A BVG conformity calculation is performed to ensure that the BVG minimum requirements are met at all times.

New Pension Fund Regulations valid from 1 January 2024

New Pension Fund Regulations apply for the Pension Fund Swiss Re with effect from         1 January 2024.

As a pensioner, you are not affected by these changes.

2019

Adjustment of current pensions

The Pension Fund Board decides yearly in December based on the financial situation of the Pension Fund whether current pensions (retirement, disability, spouse's, child's and orphan's pensions as well as supplementary pensions) are to be adjusted for inflation. We notify you about the decision either in our annual report or in an individual letter.

The Pension Fund Board took note of the provisional financial statements of 31 October 2018 at its meeting of 10 December 2018. There are no free funds and based on the expected negative performance for 2018 there will also be no free funds at the end of 2018. Furthermore the unequal treatment between pensioners and activly insureds regarding the interest payment on the saving capital has not yet been compensated for.

Accordingly, current pensions such as retirement pensions, disability pensions, spouse’s pensions, child’s pensions, orphan’s pensions and supplementary pensions will not be adjusted for the year 2019.

 

New Pension Fund Regulations valid from 1 January 2019

New Pension Fund Regulations apply for the Pension Fund Swiss Re with effect from 1 January 2019.

As a pensioner, you are affected only by the following two changes:

  • Now, on the death of the recipient of a retirement pension or temporary disability pension, this pension continues to be paid for a further three months (previously six months) provided the recipient leaves behind a partner or orphan entitled to a pension. This remains a highly generous provision, offered by only a few other pension funds. By law, the retirement pension or temporary disability pension must be paid only for the month in which the death occurs.
  • For all newly established survivors' pensions, the following reduction conditions now apply to the survivors' pension: If the spouse is more than ten years younger than the deceased insured, the calculated spouse's pension is reduced. The reduction equals 4% per full year of age difference over ten years.

Example:

The wife is 11 years and 10 months younger than her deceased husband. Their age difference is therefore one full year more than ten years, which means that her lifetime survivors' pension is reduced by 4%. The duration of the marriage does not affect the reduction.