What is a pension fund?

A pension fund is an investment product into which contributions are paid to build up a lump sum, which can either be cashed in or paid at regular intervals upon retirement. In addition, the government pays back income tax deducted from these contributions.

Where have you heard about a pension fund?

Pension funds are the world's largest investor category, ahead of mutual funds, insurance companies and hedge funds. The world's largest public pension fund is the Federal Old-age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund, which oversees $2.645 trillion USD in assets.

What you need to know about pension funds.

Pension funds are major investors in listed and private companies and are particularly important in stock markets dominated by large institutional investors. The largest 300 pension funds collectively hold assets worth approximately $6 trillion.

Pension funds can be public or private, with public pension funds being regulated under public sector law and private pension funds regulated under private sector law. Pension funds can also be open or closed, with open pension funds supporting at least one pension plan without restriction and closed pension funds only supporting pension plans limited to certain employees.

Find out more about a pension fund.

Understand pension funds further by looking up our definition of pension.