Incoming legislation forcing Finnish earnings-related pension providers in the private sector to hold an updated register of insiders, and report their relevant private business deals, will not spark a talent flight from boards, a government ministry has insisted.
In a commentary, Heli Backman, director of the pensions unit at the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, said: “Many people who work in the investment industry already have experience of reporting their holdings to an insider register.”
She was responding to criticism of the new bill on pension governance and transparency put forward to parliament by the ministry this month.
The business sector in Finland in particular had said the new obligation to publish share transactions made in a private capacity would hamper participation on the boards of occupational pension providers, she said.
It had been feared the requirement would drive skilled people off boards, she said.
“The regulations have been in force in the banking sector as well, and no one has heard any claims yet that it has been difficult to get members on these boards,” Backman said.
She also said that Keva — which manages public sector pensions and is therefore not affected by the bill — now seemed likely to come under a similar set of regulations on governance and transparency.
She pointed out that laws affecting Keva originated from the Finance Ministry, and not the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health.
“According to the information I have received, the Finance Ministry is to start drafting legislation on Keva in the autumn,” she said.
Public attention has focused on Keva in particular as being a pensions institution in need of tighter governance regulations following a management scandal late last year.
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