Pension Fund Statistics – Q4 2020

Publication Date: 7 April 2021

Key Points

Total asset values of the Irish pension fund sector increased by 5.5 per cent over Q4-2020 to stand at €124.9 billion. This marks the first quarter in which total asset values exceeded pre-pandemic levels. The rise was primarily driven by growth in investment fund shares (€2.3 billion), pension fund reserves (€1.9 billion) and currency and deposits (€1.6 billion).
Investment fund shares held by Pension Funds grew by 5.3 per cent over the quarter, to sit at €46.4 billion (37.2 per cent of total assets). Non-MMF shares increased by 6 per cent to account for €44.6 billion, with the largest fund types being Equity funds (€16.1bn) and Bond funds (€13.8bn). Money Market Fund (MMF) shares fell by 8.6 per cent to €1.8 billion.
At end-Q4 2020, Pension Fund holdings of debt securities accounted for €16.2 billion, or 13 per cent of total assets. These assets were predominantly made up of issuances from euro area countries (excluding Ireland), which accounted for €11.2 billion.