Are private market investments a risky business for DC pension savers?

We wanted to know what they knew about private market assets, if they had any preferences for which type of these assets they’d rather invest in, and where they might need reassurance around the attention being paid to assessing possible impacts on their savings.

We surveyed 2,024 people who were currently contributing to a DC pension in April 2024.[1] We found that 45% of DC savers are happy to invest in private markets but had clear favourite.

We asked DC pension savers whether they agreed with a series of statements about their pension being invested in four areas of private market assets: affordable housing, clean energy, innovation companies, and unlisted (private) companies.

Affordable housing was the frontrunner with 70% saying they’d feel more positive about their pension if its funds were being used to help support affordable housing schemes.

Investing in clean energy came a close second with 66% saying they’d feel more positive about their pension if it invested in this area, followed by 60% for investing in innovation and technology, and 49% for investing in private, unlisted companies.

Read the full article: Are private market investments a risky business for DC pension savers?

Key risks

The value of an investment and any income taken from it is not guaranteed and can go down as well as up, you may not get back the amount you originally invested.

 
[1] Research carried out in April 2024 by Ignition House on behalf of Legal & General’s asset management division. The research sampled 2,024 people in the UK who were currently contributing to a workplace pension.