Ireland’s minister for social protection, Dara Calleary, has announced the appointment of key senior personnel to the National Automatic Enrolment Retirement Savings Authority (NAERSA), including the chief executive officer, chair, and board members.
This, he said, is a critical step forward in ensuring that NAERSA is established, staffed and prepared in advance of MyFuture Fund commencing from 1 January 2026.
NAERSA will administer the automatic enrolment scheme, MyFuture Fund, facilitating people to save and invest for their retirement. It will handle the bulk of the administration of the scheme by determining eligibility for auto-enrolment and enrolling eligible employees. It will also collect all employee, employer and state contributions, and invest the money on participants’ behalf.
The Department of Social Protection said a default investment strategy will be in place, but some alternative investment options will be available for those who may wish to make a more active investment choice. NAERSA will then allocate any investment returns to participants’ savings pots.
NAERSA will operate an online portal for employees to manage employee opt-outs, opt-ins, suspension of contributions and re-enrolment. It will also operate an online portal for employers to record and facilitate payment of contributions.
NAERSA will allow participants to redeem their retirement savings at state pension age, which is currently 66.
After an extensive and rigorous recruitment process, through the Public Appointments Service, Calleary has named the first chief executive officer of NAERSA as Dermot Griffin, who is a chartered accountant and previously served as the CEO of the National Lottery from 2005 to 2019.
Griffin has since held other high-profile positions in CUSOP Payments as CEO, providing electronic payment services to credit unions, and as a non-executive director of the Irish Aviation Authority.
Roma Burke was appointed as NAERSA chair. She is an experienced actuary with extensive knowledge of the pensions industry. She has previously served as the chair of the Pensions Council and was a member of the Pensions Commission, leading its technical subcommittee. This experience, the department said, will be vital in ensuring NAERSA meets its objectives and has robust oversight.
The department also appointed Alan Barrett, Tony Donohoe, Patricia King, Brian Murphy, Orlaigh Quinn, and Mary Walsh as board members.
It added that the board will play an important role in the oversight of NAERSA and MyFuture Fund, in particular, ensuring that the interests of all stakeholders are considered and protected.
In addition to the oversight that the board will provide, NAERSA will also be answerable to the Oireachtas and will be supervised by the Pensions Authority.
Calleary said: “NAERSA will play a vital role in this landmark policy. The introduction of My Future Fund is about ensuring that employees have access to a quality-assured retirement savings option. In time, it will not just benefit employees but will also be a boom to the economy as more people will have more money to spend in retirement. The CEO, chair and board all have major parts to play, and I am confident in their ability to deliver for Ireland.”
Griffin added: “It will be my goal to make sure that employers are supported through the introduction of MyFuture Fund by ensuring that NAERSA performs all of its functions. However, the other side of this is making sure NAERSA protects employees, and compliance will be a key area of my focus.”
Griffin added that getting NAERSA on its feet and ensuring MyFuture Fund is up and running is a “hugely important” moment for Ireland.
Burke said: “I take the responsibility very seriously, especially in NAERSA’s role of acting in the best interests of the participants. MyFuture Fund is so enormously important to the future prosperity of Ireland and its people, and to get to play a role in it gives me a great sense of pride.”
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