Assogestioni offers a pension fund from birth

Ten euros a month from birth until adulthood, paid by the State directly into a pension fund in the child's name. This is the proposal of Assogestioni, the Italian association of managed savings, presented during a press conference in Milan, during the "Previdenza dalla cradle" event. The project, explored in depth in a study by the Research and Legislation Agency (Arel), aims to broaden access to complementary pensions by bringing forward the first payment by many years. The topic also entered the 2027 budget, which provides for a public provision for newborns.

How the accounts would work

The proposal provides for the opening, by parents, of a pension investment account (CIP) with a pension fund that is already operational and registered in the Covip register (Supervision Commission on Pension Funds). With 10 euros a month, at 18 the boy would have received 2,160 euros in public contributions. The value of the position would depend on investment results, costs and any additional payments.

Parents, grandparents and other family members could also add to the bill. To encourage these payments, Assogestioni proposes an additional tax deductibility limit, to be defined by law. The State contribution would be the same for everyone, while the possibility of integrating the sum would depend on the availability of individual families.

The weight of time

Arel's study hypothesizes investments that change with age. In the early years, when retirement is still a long way off, the portfolio may have a higher equity component. Risk exposure would then be gradually reduced. The potential advantage of starting from birth lies in the time available to reinvest the returns gradually accrued. The result, even over a horizon of several decades, would depend on the performance of the markets.

For Assogestioni, following the trend of the position over time would also give families a concrete opportunity to become familiar with long-term savings. However, the first step would remain in the hands of the parents, who are called upon to choose the fund and open the position for their child.

The link with the maneuver

The 2027 budget bill provides for the "Value for newborns" fund at the INPS (National Social Security Institute), with a public contribution of 100 euros per year up to the age of majority for children born from 1 January 2027. In the text circulated so far, the transfer of the sums to a form of complementary pension would take place from the age of 18, upon request of the owner. It is on this passage that the proposal presented in Milan intervenes. “The contributions must flow into the complementary pension right from the start,” explained Maria Luisa Gota, president of Assogestioni.

The potential advantage does not derive from the simple setting aside of the contribution, but from its investment, with professional management, diversified portfolios and paths consistent with the time horizon. For the Association, the objective must be to create an effective pension path through the complementary pension schemes already operational and subject to supervision by Covip, so that the financial management of pension funds can enhance the long term.