Pension funds' profit close to CZK 5bn in 2012

Prague, Feb 27 (CTK) - Pension funds in the Czech Republic saw their profit rise by 6 percent year-on-year to Kc4.83bn last year, the Association of Pension Funds (APF) told CTK today.

Pension funds registered a record number of 5.15 million clients, over half a million more than at the end of 2011.

Savings made up by clients' deposits, their employers' contributions, state subsidies and appreciation reached Kc247.7bn, which was an annual rise of 6 percent.

In Q4 2012 alone, the number of private pension scheme clients increased by more than 474,000.

The rise of interest in this kind of saving was connected with a statutory period that restricted the possibility to sign such contracts until the end of November, APF president Karel Svoboda said.

"Last year confirmed that Czechs became very much aware the advantages of saving in the third pillar. It is just a question of time when the second pillar becomes the same or an even bigger hit because it enables clients to get many times higher state support," pension company Penzijni spolecnost Ceske pojistovny head Tomas Matousek said.

The average size of clients' deposits last year grew by 3.6 percent to Kc465.

The number of clients whose employers contribute to their private pension savings increased by nearly 50,000 to 992,953 in Q4 2012.

Pension fund scontinued pursuing conservative investment strategy last year. The highest amount of money last year was placed in bonds and treasury bills (86 percent). Shares and participation certificates accounted for 1.4 percent of pension funds' investments. Time deposits and accounts accounts made up nearly 10 percent. Other investments, such as investments in real estate, accounted for 2.5 percent.