BPL Pensioen, the Dutch pension fund for those in the agriculture and green sector, has reported that its 2025 return was -1.69 per cent, with its assets falling from €24.8bn to €24.7bn, its annual report has revealed.

The fund attributed its negative return to 2025 being a turbulent year for the stock market, but despite this, it said it is in “good financial shape”.

Indeed, the fund’s annual report showed that it increased all pensions by 3.2 per cent as of 1 January 2026, keeping pace with inflation and helping to maintain purchasing power for its participants.

The fund’s profit for the financial year amounted to €2.91m, while its provisions for pension liabilities were €18.7m in 2025 and its available equity was €6.23m.

The report also showed that the fund’s current funding ratio was 133.3 per cent at the end of 2025, an improvement compared to 115.3 per cent at the end of 2024.

Its policy coverage ratio, the average funding ratio over the past 12 months, also improved from 86.8 per cent at the end of 2024 to 89.7 per cent at the end of 2025.

Meanwhile, the number of BPL Pensioen members increased by 10,327 in 2025, totalling 678,488 at the end of the year.

The fund noted that 2025 was largely dominated by the new Dutch pension system and reaffirmed its expectation to transition to the new scheme on 1 January 2027.

“The past year was once again marked by change and progress. With our slogan 'working together for the future' in mind, we are preparing for the biggest system change in decades,” the fund said.

“The switch to the new pension system on January 1, 2027, is getting closer. In 2025, we took important steps to make this transition happen. Careful decision-making was central to this process, in close cooperation with the fund bodies such as the accountability body and the supervisory board, as well as social partners.”

BPL Pensioen submitted various plans to the regulators in 2025, which were approved, and also prepared its pension administration, carried out additional checks on data quality, and conducted research into its investments and risks.

In addition, the report highlighted that responsible investing remains a pillar of BPL Pensioen’s policy, with research showing that 74 per cent of participants consider it important that the fund continue to invest responsibly.

“We aim to prevent our investments from having negative effects on climate change, water, and biodiversity, contributing to a liveable world now and for the future,” the fund noted.

Looking ahead, the fund said that 2026 will be a year of “intensive preparation”. In particular, the fund said it will continue to work on implementing the new pension system, strengthening its governance, and staying alert to risks.

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