It is an “illusion that the new system is going to be perfect”, De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB) supervision director, Gita Salden, has said in reference to the Dutch pension reform, as she emphasised, “that is not the goal”.

Speaking at PensioenPro’s annual conference recently, DNB supervision director Gita Salden discussed the future landscape once the transition is complete.

Salden admitted that there is “plenty to learn”, not just for the industry but for DNB as well. However, trust would be crucial in a journey that will be discovered “step by step”.

“What we also know for sure: There will still be some transition work to do after 1 January 2028. We are currently making a conscious decision to deal first with what is most important for inward migration,” she said.

“If necessary, we will deliberately push other issues forward. This could involve, for instance, risk attitude or the design of the solidarity reserve. Two parts with an open standard whose interpretation still needs to crystallise further.”

Another important change, she said, is that the new system will become a lot more personal.

“By looking more closely at who can best bear risks, the degree of risk sharing between generations is decreasing. Moreover, transparency through individual pension statements is increasing enormously,” Salden said.

This, she added, “fundamentally requires something new from funds and trustees”, particularly in the area of communication as members have become more knowledgeable and critical in recent years.

On what challenges will remain the same in the new system, she listed investment, risk management and governance, as well as the way regulators will look at fund policies and decision-making and how schemes portray and manage risks.

When it comes to trust, Salden highlighted the shared challenge of everyone working in the sector, to “make sure people have confidence in the pension system”, but added that it is “important to outline realistic expectations for pension members about the future”.

“After all, not everyone can always get ahead. That may be an uncomfortable message in a society yearning for grip and certainty, but it is the honest story,” she cautioned.

In her view, being well prepared will be key to a successful transition, as she listed tools pension funds could implement to aid this, such as stress tests.

She added: “… it is an illusion that the new system is going to be perfect. Therefore, that is not the goal. Not during the transition and not after. It is about resilience and the ability to keep learning and developing.”

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