Latest news with #eMPF
RTHK
07-06-2025
- Business
- RTHK
'All MPF schemes to be onboarded to eMPF this year'
'All MPF schemes to be onboarded to eMPF this year' The managing director of the MPFA Cheng Yan-chee says the platform is expected to save administration costs of up to HK$40 billion over 10 years. Photo: RTHK The managing director of the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority (MPFA), Cheng Yan-chee, on Saturday said the authority aims to transfer all MPF accounts to the eMPF Platform within this year. The one-stop platform, which came into operation in June last year, aims to streamline and automate the administrative work of MPF schemes. Speaking on a radio programme, Cheng said the authority is undergoing the second phase of onboarding schemes to the platform, and all MPF accounts can be viewed on the site within this year. "We had our first phase of onboarding from June to October last year, involving small-scale trustees. They have fewer employee and employer accounts. They account for two percent of the total number of accounts in the city," he said. "The second phase is from March to August, dealing with midsize trustees who have more accounts. After this phase, one-fourth of all accounts will be onboarded to the platform." The director said he expects the platform to help reduce administration costs and save up to HK$40 billion in the coming 10 years. Meanwhile, Cheng said the authority is reviewing the maximum and minimum levels of MPF contributions, considering factors such as the socioeconomic situation and income distribution, and will hand in a report to the government next year.
Bloomberg
06-06-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Hong Kong's New Platform for $166 Billion Pension Faces Glitches
Some Hong Kong pensioners migrating to a new electronic system for retirement savings have experienced glitches, raising concerns over the platform's reliability as it enters a key phase of adding more users. The eMPF platform, built by a unit of Hong Kong tycoon Richard Li's PCCW Ltd. and Singapore-based subcontractor iFast Corp., showed tech issues including log-in difficulty, according to people familiar with the project, who requested not to be named.
South China Morning Post
05-06-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
It will pay Hong Kong's workers to check their savings after MPF shake-up
Hong Kong's retirement savings scheme has had its fair share of criticism over the years. The meagre compulsory monthly contributions and relatively high administration fees charged by private service providers mean many retirees are struggling to make ends meet. Thankfully, a revamp is under way. It is welcome news that fees charged under the Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF) have fallen by 36 per cent since the launch of a centralised electronic platform last year, one of the scheme's most significant reforms since its introduction in 2000. The fee currently set at 37 basis points (0.37 per cent), which is 36 per cent lower than the average of 58 basis points (0.58 per cent) charged by trustees before switching to the e-platform, is expected to decrease gradually. The cumulative savings from lower fees are estimated to reach HK$30 billion to HK$40 billion (US$3.8 billion to US$5.1 billion) over a 10-year period, representing a decrease of 41 to 55 per cent in fees, according to the MPF authority. The massive savings speak volumes for the inadequacies of the previous arrangements. The eMPF was launched last June to provide a centralised online platform that would replace the separate systems used by 12 different operators, allowing all service providers, 367,000 employers and 4.75 million members to manage fund assets worth HK$1.338 trillion on a single platform on their mobile phones or computers. A quarter of the small and medium-tier accounts would have migrated to the platform by August. The top four players that manage 70 per cent of the MPF's assets are slated to move over between September and December – a process described as very challenging.
South China Morning Post
01-06-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Admin fees for Hong Kong's MPF down by 36% since launch of digital platform
Fees charged by Hong Kong's Mandatory Provident Fund have dropped by 36 per cent since the launch of its centralised digital platform last year, with over 2.7 million members and 70,000 employers to be managed under the new system by August, the scheme's chief has said. Mandatory Provident Fund Authority chairwoman Ayesha Macpherson Lau warned on Sunday that the next phase of migration onto the platform would be 'very challenging', as moving large volumes of data from the city's four largest service providers would be complex. The eMPF was launched on June 26 last year, the most significant reform of the city's 25-year-old compulsory retirement scheme, to provide a centralised platform that would replace the separate systems used by 12 different operators. Lau said administration fees had since declined. 'The fee charged by the eMPF is set at 37 basis points (0.37 per cent) currently, which is 36 per cent lower than the average of 58 basis points (0.58 per cent) charged by trustees before joining the eMPF, and will be further reduced gradually,' she said in a blog post. The eMPF will ultimately allow the 12 service providers, 367,000 employers and 4.75 million members to manage fund assets worth HK$1.326 trillion (US$170.3 billion) on a single platform on their mobile phones or computers. Lau added that the 'straight pass-on' requirement in MPF legislation ensured savings, estimated at a cumulative HK$30 billion to HK$40 billion over a 10-year period, directly benefited members of the scheme.
Business Times
28-04-2025
- Business
- Business Times
iFast plunges 12% after cutting its Hong Kong profit guidance
[SINGAPORE] iFast shares plunged as much as 12 per cent on Monday (Apr 28) morning, after the investment platform operator revised its Hong Kong operations' profit target and reported first-quarter earnings. As at noon, the counter dropped 12.1 per cent or S$0.87 to S$6.32. The Singapore-based company cut its Hong Kong profit before tax target for 2025 to HK$380 million (S$64.3 million) from its previous guidance of HK$500 million, based on its earnings report on Friday (Apr 25). iFast reported a net profit rise of 31.2 per cent year on year to S$19 million for the first quarter ended Mar 31, which was driven by a 24.4 per cent year-on-year increase in revenue to S$106.9 million. This was largely due to a turnaround in its UK bank and continued growth in the group's core wealth management platform business. DBS said on Apr 25, after iFast reported earnings, that its Q1 revenue and net profit were slightly below expectations. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up 'Growth in Hong Kong was weighed down by higher investments in the ePension division, with PBT declining 6.8 per cent year on year despite a 12.8 per cent increase in revenue. The dip in profitability is due to increased investments in the ePension division ahead of onboarding activity,' said DBS. ePension refers to its pension administration services. 'However, both the revenues and profitability of the ePension division are expected to be higher in the second half of 2025 as the overall onboarding of the eMPF platform progresses to a substantially higher level,' the bank added. DBS has a buy call on iFast with a price target of S$10.88.
