News: Almost 550 participants of the regional financial conference Challenge of Change

The traditional regional financial conference 'Challenge of Change', organized by the Croatian Association of Pension Fund Management and Pension Insurance Companies (UMFO) and the Zagreb Stock Exchange, gathered almost 550 participants from the domestic and international financial community.
 
   
Commenting on the current developments in the financial markets, the president of the Croatian Financial Services Supervisory Agency, Ante Žigman, pointed out that in 2023 growth was achieved beyond expectations. All classes of financial assets grew, and there was a particularly strong recovery in the American stock markets. At the same time, the yield of mandatory pension funds and investment funds also recovered. As expected, category A funds achieved the best returns this year (13.2%) and thus beat inflation. "We expect that category B funds will be at least or above the level of inflation (7.5%), and category C funds have also seen a recovery (1.9%). All this shows that the recovery of the market is in sight," said Ante Žigman.

However, according to Mr. Žigman, we should be careful. The rise in interest rates, continued inflation, recession, but also wars, increase certain systemic risks, which is why all European regulators, including those in Croatia, monitor the state of the financial sector in particular.
 
Boris Vujčić, Governor of the Croatian National Bank, emphasized: "Although the trends of employment growth and unemployment decline continue, the rate of participation in the labor market of the active population is 70%, which is below the European average of 75%. Life expectancy is continuously increasing and results in a very unfavorable change in the age structure of the population. The assumptions are that in the next 20 years or so, the number of the working-age population will decrease by about 400,000 people, and this loss cannot be compensated for by the inactive population or demographic pronatality policies. It can be compensated only by increasing further migration, activating pensioners, extending the working age or automation and robotization".
  At the round table entitled 'Contemporary trends in the development of European pension funds', it was concluded that Croatia is the leader among the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, and it stands very well in comparison with the rest of the continent. It was emphasized that Europe has very different pension systems when it comes to the method of membership and pension payment. As an interesting example, the Netherlands was pointed out, which has very good cooperation between pension funds, companies and trade unions, because membership in the pension fund is mandatory according to the collective agreement, and not because of the legislative framework. Conclusion of the panel is that the common goal of all pension system stakeholders is to affirm voluntary pension savings and include as many people as possible in the third pension pillar.

At the Conference, awards were presented to companies that stood out for the quality of their relations with investors. This is an award that 'Poslovni dnevnik' has been awarding in cooperation with the Zagreb Stock Exchange for the 14th year in a row: companies from the CROBEX index and companies included in the Prime and Official Markets of the Zagreb Stock Exchange enter the competition, and the winners are decided on the basis of statistical criteria and on the basis of a survey conducted among capital market participants. The third prize was awarded to Valamar Riviera, the second to Podravka, and the first to Atlantic Grupa. 

The second half of the Challenge of Change conference was marked by expert discussions on what pension funds bring as shareholders, the role of pension funds and capital markets in the development of innovative industries, and what OECD membership brings to Croatia.

The presidents of the boards of renowned companies - Podravka, Spana, Valamar Riviera, Končar Elektroindustrija, NLB and M Plus - participated in the panel entitled 'Pension funds as shareholders - what ownership of institutional investors brings'.

The conclusion of the panelists is that pension funds as shareholders contribute to the introduction of the world's best corporate practices in the management and disposal of assets.

Expert discussion 'Looking to the future: the role of pension funds and the capital market in the development of innovative industries', attended by representatives of Infobip, Endava, One Equity Partners and Digital Assembly, brought an interesting discussion about the importance of pension funds and investment funds for the development and encouragement of innovation in Croatia.

The end of the conference was marked by a round table entitled 'Capital Market Development Strategy on the Road to Croatia's Entry into the OECD'. The main conclusions of the survey of on the development of the capital market conducted by the Croatian Association of Investment Professionals (CFA Croatia) were presented, which point to the need to acquire the emerging market status of the Croatian capital market, strengthen and encourage issuers, and mobilize savings and encourage the activities of retail investors. The conclusion of the panel is that Croatia's membership in the OECD, the only major international organization that Croatia has yet to join, will be an opportunity for additional development of the capital market.

The conference was concluded with lectures on socially responsible business. Deloitte presented the challenges and opportunities of the green transition, while UNICEF Croatia presented responsible investing viewed through the prism of children's rights.