Big problem? Think small

Solving the conundrum of the Universities Superannuation Scheme seems like an overwhelming task. Tackling it bit by bit could be the answer.

This is an article about elephants—at least, the kind of elephant that occupies a room. Our elephant (the obvious problem that people don’t want to talk about) is the Universities Superannuation Scheme, used by many academic institutions up and down the country to provide benefits for their staff.

Like all elephants, it is big. It comes in at £60 billion in assets. It is also hungry, and recent concerns have focused on its increasing appetite. In 2016, it took £1.45bn in employers’ money, rising to £1.85bn; and £206 million in employees’ money, rising to £211m.