The draft proposes that private funds transfer more than 25 billion pesos to Colpensiones in 15 business daysalthough it can still be modified before becoming a final standard.
News Colombia.
The national government published a draft decree which raises a possible transfer of resources from private pension funds to the public system administered by Colpensiones.
The proposal is part of the regulations of the pension reform and has generated debate about the management of the savings of millions of Colombian workers.
The document establishes that the private pension fund administrators They must transfer to Colpensiones the money accumulated in the individual account of some members, including both the contributions made during their working life and the financial returns generated until the effective date of the transfer.
What are private pension funds?
Private pension fund administrators are companies that manage individual savings of workers. Each member has a personal account where their monthly contributions are accumulated. See: What will the process be like to inherit the pension in Colombia?
The administrators invest these resources in different financial instruments to generate returns, so that at the time of retirement, the worker receives a pension based on the capital saved plus the returns obtained.
Among the main administrators in Colombia are:
- Future
- Protection
- Colfondos
- Skandia
These operate under the Individual Savings Schemewhich works in parallel to the public pension system administered by Colpensiones.
Difference with Colpensiones
- Private funds: Each person accumulates their own savings and the returns depend on the investments made by the AFP.
- Colpensions: It works under a solidarity system where the contributions of current workers finance the pensions of those who are already retired.
Terms and scope of the transfer
According to the draft, private funds will have to transfer the resources to the public system within 15 business days since the decree comes into force. The estimate is that this transfer would involve more than 25 billion pesoscorresponding to the affiliates who would move to the public component of the pension system.
It is important to highlight that This information is based on a draft published by the Ministry of Labornot in a definitive standard. This means that the details could be changed before its official adoption.
The Government seeks to strengthen the public pension system and expand coverage for people who currently cannot access a retirement pension. The transfer of resources would allow the consolidation of the common fund with which pensions are paid within Colpensiones, increasing its capacity to serve members of the public regime.
However, the initiative has raised concerns among some economists and representatives of the financial sector, who warn that any change in the management of individual savings must be carefully analyzed, given its potential impact on the future profitability and stability of the economic system.
Draft status
For now, the document is in draft phaseopen to comments and observations from citizens, experts and interested entities.
Only after this process and the official signing of the decree will the exact amounts, the definitive deadlines and the members who must make the transfer be defined.
The debate on the transfer of pension resources reflects one of the most sensitive points of the reform: how the savings of millions of Colombian workers will be distributed and managed in the coming years.
