Pension Funds struggle to stay afloat due to late payments from ZUS

The Pension Funds Chamber of Commerce (IGTE) confirmed that nine or ten companies that manage ZUS funds on behalf of Open Pension Funds could eventually face bankruptcy as they are running out of cash. One of the main reasons for this is the fact that ZUS is very slow in coming forward with overdue payments. One solution to this problem might be sector consolidation, but due to planned changes in the law governing the funds, companies will not be able to merge for the next six months. "There is no immediate threat of bankruptcy and this would only occur in extremely unfavorable economic circumstances. "According to our pessimistic calculations pension funds might not receive overdue premiums from the Social Insurance Company (ZUS) and they will not consolidate," said IGTE deputy president Krzysztof Lutostanski. Another three to four pension funds might produce some profit but they will not be able to fully cover their expenditures. Only the biggest companies are expected to show a return on investment. The total amount placed into pension funds stands at zl. 3.1 billion, which means that zl. 2.5 billion was invested with losses for the owners. "Pension fund revenues are much lower than forecast, so they require additional financing," claims IGTE president Tomasz Bankowski. If any pension fund goes bankrupt, its clients will not lose anything, as they have placed their money in Open Pension Funds (OFE) and not in the companies that manage this capital, and which in turn is covered by the pension guarantee fund. (Puls Biznesu, p. 7) M.M.