Romania’s Financial Supervisory Authority (ASF) is facing criticism for excluding the country’s only EU-affiliated consumer association from a key consultation on pension reform.

The Association of Romanian Financial Services Users (AURSF), backed by Better Finance, has accused the ASF of excluding it from a debate and instead only inviting representatives from the finance industry.

This is despite the AURSF originally calling for a public debate on the pension reform on 26 June.

The debate was organised by the ASF yesterday, 19 August, at the Ministry of Labour. Several trade and employer organisations were invited, including the Association for Privately Administered Pensions in Romania (APAPR).

AURSF chairman, Alin Iacob, told European Pensions that he does not “understand” why the ASF was so reluctant to include his association in a public debate – especially as, in his view, it is the most representative organisation of participants’ and beneficiaries’ interests.

He added that the association was not consulted on the drafting of the law either.
He continued: “I think it is very important to have a wide and open public debate, with all stakeholders at the same table. The law should be written with the interests of participants – the future beneficiaries – first in mind.

“We will continue to make our voice loudly heard by local authorities, especially the government and parliament. And we are confident that, in the end, the final form of the law will take into account the interests of participants and beneficiaries.”

As a member of Better Finance – the Brussels-based federation representing retail investors and pension savers across the EU – AURSF has received support in a public post on LinkedIn

It stated: “Better Finance stands by its Romanian member AURSF in voicing concerns that the draft law on payments proposed by the ASF appears to favour the financial industry over the interests of savers.”

It added that policymaking on such a “vital issue must be transparent and inclusive” and called for the notification of the reform process to the European Commission, the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

Iacob described this support as “very important” and added that the “most important EU organisation of financial services users should be heard not only in Brussels, but also at member state level”.

Last week (11 August), authorities confirmed plans to launch an extended public consultation on the draft law in response to industry and association concerns.

Initially subjected to a brief 10-day consultation in June, the reforms aim to help Romania meet the requirements to join the OECD and resolve long-standing issues, as payout legislation has been overdue since 2011.

Key features include continued investment of accumulated savings during the payment phase, with scheduled withdrawal funds limited to low-risk fixed-income assets, along with tax advantages compared to lump-sum or short-term withdrawals.

The legislation allows an initial withdrawal of up to 25 per cent of total assets, with the remainder paid out over at least 10 years, and aims to guarantee a minimum income equal to the social allowance for retirees, while providing flexibility for higher-balance savers.

In response, the ASF, said: ”The public debate on the Draft Law on the Payment of Private Pensions was held on 19 August 2025 by the Ministry of Labor, Family, Youth and Social Solidarity, to which the ASF was also invited to participate, through its specialists, in order to provide the necessary technical support.

"The event was publicly announced and took place in an open setting, with the aim of gathering viewpoints intended to improve this draft law.

"The meeting organised by the Ministry of Labor, Family, Youth and Social Solidarity was attended by representative entities from trade union confederations, employers’ confederations, as well as other civil society organisations — including the Consumers United consumer association, an NGO active at the level of European regulatory institutions.

"Throughout the discussions, the participants expressed both support and divergent opinions regarding the provisions of the draft, all of these views being taken into account, in a constructive manner, as potential amendments.

"The AURSF is welcome to actively join this dialogue, as it has done on other occasions at the invitation of, and within debates organised by the ASF. As part of the consultations held so far, at the beginning of June this year, ASF organised a bilateral meeting with the AURSF during which the provisions of this law were discussed, with the association subsequently submitting a number of proposals.

"Given that the normative act is a draft law, discussions on its final form will continue with stakeholders within the specialised committees of the Parliament of Romania, which will put the adoption of this draft to a vote.

"The Authority remains fully open to dialogue and reiterates that the consultation process for the Law on the Payment of Private Pensions has been transparent and inclusive, and expresses its conviction that the proposals received will contribute to improving the draft legislative act, in the interest of all participants in the private pension system.”

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