The official launch of the mandatory pension system (pillar II) will be postponed until September 17th- a delay of at least one month after the previously considered date (August), the Private Pension System Supervision Commission (CSSPP) announced yesterday.
On this date (in two months' time to be precise) the four-month campaign to join a mandatory private pension fund will begin. Every employee below 35 years of age (up until December 31st this year) will have to join a mandatory pension fund, with the option also open to employees aged up to 45 years.
Advertising campaigns for mandatory pensions are permitted to start on September 17th, simultaneously, for each individual fund manager. The Commission prohibits any marketing and advertising operations before the approved date.
"September is a start date that everyone is satisfied with," says Mircea Oancea, CSSPP chairman, commenting on the recent requests from labour unions (that want the system delayed by at least two months) and to the objections of the companies on the private pension market (which say they are ready to begin in August, as initially planned).
"A longer period of time allotted for licensing will give contributors the ability to choose from a wide variety of funds, with different characteristics." This is how the Commission chose to explain its decision to postpone the start of the system.
The initial period allowed for joining a fund will be exactly four months, followed by a "lottery", which will redistribute the employees below 35 years of age who have not chosen a fund by the required time, proportionate with the number of contributors already attracted.
The first contributions to the system will most likely start being collected in February or March next year, later than initially planned (January).
Meanwhile, the number of companies interested in this market has reached 15, after both Bancpost and the French company AG2R submitted an application to the CSSPP to set up a mandatory pension company. Union confederation Cartel Alfa will hold 3% in the pension company owned by the French at AG2R.
The 15 companies that have applied for a mandatory private pension manager licence are AG2R, AIG, Allianz-Tiriac Pensii Private, Aviva Romania, Bancpost, BCR, BRD-SocGen, BT Aegon, Generali, ING, Interamerican, Omniasig, OTP, the Slovenian company Prva and Romexterra-Delta.
As yet, none of these companies has received the licensing approval from the Private Pension Commission. Market sources verified for ZIARUL FINANCIAR that indeed the first licensing approvals for the mandatory pension companies were likely to be issued today during the meeting of the CSSPP Board.
The Commission will gradually issue licences, depending on the readiness and the papers submitted by those wanting to manage pensions, CSSPP representatives say. Traditionally, CSSPP holds its meetings on Tuesday, but will add additional meetings to its schedule so that every company that comes up with all the necessary papers could receive a mandatory private pension manager licence in due time.
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