Mandatory private pension funds (Pillar II) achieved in 2023 the best weighted average return since the launch of the system, says Radu Crăciun, general director of the BCR Pensii company and president of the Romanian Association of Pension Fund Administrators.

“The 7 mandatory private pension funds (Pillar II) recorded a weighted average return of 17.94% in 2023, the best annual performance in the entire history of the system.

The return of 2023 once again confirms the medium and long-term winning formula that private pension funds offer. Even if negative developments can occur in the short term, as was the case in 2022, the subsequent recovery of the markets means that the long-term positive trend is maintained. It is an invitation to calmness and trust in moments when the markets do not offer, temporarily, the expected returns,” says the president of APAPR.

The net assets of PII funds rose, on September 31, 2023, to 117 billion lei, 33% more than the value recorded a year ago.

The main investments are government T-bills (about 64%) and listed shares (23%), followed by corporate bonds (5%) and bank deposits (3.6%).

Autor: Bogdan Tudorache

Active in the economic and business press for the past 26 years, Bogdan graduated Law and then attended intensive courses in Economics and Business English. He went up to the position of editor-in-chief since 2006 and has provided management and editorial policy for numerous economic publications dedicated especially to the community of foreign investors in Romania. From 2003 to 2013 he was active mainly in the financial-banking sector. He started freelancing for Energynomics in 2013, notable for his advanced knowledge of markets, business communities and a mature editorial style, both in Romanian and English.