The state-run Social Security System (SSS) mulls planning to invest the money raised through its social pension fund abroad to earn from its reserves.
Rizaldy Capulong, SSS vice president, said they are eyeing to invest excess revenues in either global bonds or mutual funds under the Social Security Act of 2018.
Capulong said that they are looking to invest in global bonds and global equities. He said SSS had chalked out a five-year plan to maximize its capital activities overseas and the strategy was to secure foreign bonds and invest in mutual funds from 2019 to 2024. The executives however decided to call it off to focus spending on benefits and loans needed by members during the pandemic.
Capulong said that they “originally had a five-year plan to go into foreign investments from 2019, but because of COVID last year, we had to forgo this five-year plan because we needed to prioritize the needs of our members and pensioners.”
Contributions paid to SSS shrank by more than seven percent last year to P204.75 billion from P220.38 billion in 2019 and at least 1.5 million members stopped paying their contributions due to loss of livelihood and income.
The premiums remitted to SSS grew by nearly 17 percent to P159.75 billion as of the first week of September from P136.6 billion a year ago and the state-run firm generated P192 billion in revenues during the period more than its disbursements of P163 billion.
Capulong said that the SSS also needs to invest in offshore markets to cover the benefits of overseas Filipino workers who remit their contributions in foreign currencies.
The law has mandated SSS to include all OFWs in its compulsory coverage.
