Correspondence: Alexander Börsch, Allianz Global Investors AG, Seidlstr. 24-24a, Munich 80335, Germany. E-mail: alexander.boersch@allianzgi.com

¹is a senior pension analyst in the International Pensions unit at Allianz Global Investors. His main responsibilities include research on trends in international pension markets. He holds masters degrees in Economics and in Political Science from the University of Munich, as well as a PhD in Political Economy from the European University Institute in Florence. He has been a visiting researcher at the University of Warwick, Insead and the London School of Economics.

Received 9 March 2009; Revised 9 March 2009.

Abstract

The paper studies the variety of funded pension designs that has emerged over the last decade. Two main trends have characterised the global pension landscape within this period: first, the introduction of a large number of funded schemes; and second, a shift from defined benefit to defined contribution. While funded pensions of the defined contribution type often tend to be equated with the model of individual accounts, in fact several models have emerged. This paper illustrates these differences with reference to the schemes introduced in Western Europe, Eastern Europe and Asia.