Ryan ALM
Blog
ARPA Update as of October 17, 2025
The PBGC is doing its best to get through an imposing list of applicants for Special Financial Assistance (SFA). However, it seems more like one step forward, 1 1/2 steps backward for that organization as they grapple with late arrivals...
Remember: NO Free Lunch!
In 1938, journalist Walter Morrow, Scripps-Howard newspaper chain, wrote the phrase "there ain't no such thing as a free lunch" . The pension community would be well-served by remembering what Mr. Morrow produced more than eight decades ago. Morrow's story...
MV versus FV
There seems to be abundant confusion within certain segments of the pension industry regarding the purpose and accounting (performance) of a Cash Flow Matching (CFM) portfolio on a monthly basis. Traditional monthly reports focus on the present value (PV) of...
ARPA Update as of October 10, 2025
Welcome to Columbus and Indigenous Peoples' Day. Bond markets are closed and the equity markets remain open. Columbus Day remains a federal holiday, but with most federal employees already furloughed, it will not be a day to celebrate for many....
Ryan ALM, Inc. 3Q'25 Newsletter
We are pleased to provide the Ryan ALM, Inc. Q3'25 Newsletter that explores both asset and liability performance for the first nine months of 2025. As you will read, asset growth has exceeded liability growth for both public and private...
An Alternative Pension Funding Formula
I've spent the last few days attending and speaking at the FPPTA conference in Sawgrass, Florida. As I've reported on multiple occasions, I believe that the FPPTA does as good a job as any public fund organization of providing critical...
ARPA Update as of October 3, 2025
Welcome to the first update in October. Autumn has been an extension of the summer weather in NJ - dry and hot! I'm writing this post from cloudy Florida (FPPTA) where it is humid and hot! When will I finally...
Now 51% of the Median Household Income
You may recall that in April this year I penned a post on the impact of housing costs on one's ability to fund a retirement fund. Unfortunately, it continues to get worse. According to a Goldman Sachs survey, “ New...
Milliman: Public Pension Funding Improves
Milliman has released the latest results from their public pension fund index (PPFI). As a reminder, this index analyzes data from the U.S.'s largest 100 public DB pension plans. Pension funding improved for the fifth consecutive month. As a result,...
ARPA Update as of September 26, 2025
Welcome to Autumn. Hopefully, the cooler weather will help the PBGC get through these next three months given that they still have 75 multiemployer pension plans waiting to submit an initial application. The PBGC has been processing about eight applications...