Total Finnish earnings-related pension assets increased by €12.8bn year-on-year to €255bn at the end of 2023, according to figures from the Finnish Centre for Pensions (ETK).

ETK attributed the growth to positive investment returns, with pension providers achieving a total return of €14.9bn over the year.

At the end of 2023, private sector pension assets were €162bn and public sector pension assets were €93bn.

Approximately €5.8bn of pension assets were used to pay earnings-related pensions in 2023, up by €1.4bn compared to 2022.

Earnings-related pensions amounting to €34.1bn were paid during the year.

Total expenditure in the earnings-related pension system also increased in 2023, by €2.7bn to €34.6bn, mainly due to indexation of pensions in payment.

“The index increase in 2023 was 6.8 per cent,” ETK mathematician, Henna Iire noted. “In 2024, the pension index increases pensions in payment by 5.7 per cent.”

The earnings-related pension scheme recorded an income of €32.1bn in 2023, of which €27bn euros were in the form of contributions.

Compared to 2022, the pension contribution income increased by €1.3bn.

“The contribution income increased for the same reasons as in 2022,” Iire stated.

“The wage sum has increased slightly, and the repayment of the temporary reduction of contributions under the Employees Pensions Act due to the corona pandemic continues.”

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