A SUPPLEMENT TO EUROMONEY/APRIL 1999: EASTERN EUROPE
Poland's pension plans have been on and off more times than a light switch in the past three or four years. Now the scheme is up and running and in May the first zlotys will start dropping into the coffers of the 16 pension fund companies formed to manage Poland's new private pension scheme.
It consists of three parts. The existing pay-as-you-go system stays as it is for those aged over 50. The second part involves people paying into one of the private pension schemes: for those aged under 30 this will be mandatory; those aged between 30 and 50 - and, in a late concession, all the country's coal miners - will be able to opt out. The third element is a voluntary scheme for those wishing to make additional contributions.
It is the second part that investment companies, insurance groups and banks are focusing on because it is here that the biggest profits will be made. Western banks and insurers spent last year tripping over each other to get a licence to collect contributions under the scheme.