Three Norway Municipal Funds to Merge

Three Norwegian local authorities have decided to pool their resources and create one big municipal pension plan.

The Akershus and Buskerud municipal pension plans will merge on January 1, 2020, to form the Viken Pension Fund. Viken is expected to start with $791 million in assets.

It will also shift about $145.2 million in Østfold county’s municipal assets from Kommunal Landspensjonkasse, the nation’s top municipal pension provider, when its contract with Østfold expires, which is the same date as Viken’s inception.

“The supervisory boards of AFPK and Buskerud Municipal Pension Fund [BFKP] are requested to work as soon as possible with the aim of merging the two pension funds from 1 January 2020,” Akershus said on its website.

All Akershus and Buskerud employees who are members of those two, and the Kommunal fund, will also become part of Viken.

Kommunal has said it will ensure a smooth transition of  Østfold’s elements to the new organization.

This comes as Norway undergoes a municipal pension reform, with the goal of scaling down its administrative regions. The changes have led to a series of consolidations similar to Viken.

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