Mercer, ORIX Corporation to provide funding valuation services for Japanese corporate pension plansNew service anticipates chang

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Mercer Japan Ltd. and ORIX Corporation have entered into a collaboration agreement to provide comprehensive plan design, valuation, and administrative services for Japanese corporate pension plans

Mercer Japan Ltd. and ORIX Corporation have entered into a collaboration agreement to provide comprehensive plan design, valuation, and administrative services for Japanese corporate pension plans. Under the agreement, recently announced by Mercer Japan Ltd president, Tsuyoshi Komori, and ORIX Corporation president Yanase Yukio, Mercer will provide actuarial services including annual funding status reviews and funding revaluations for defined benefit corporate pension plans, and ORIX will provide administrative services such as record keeping and contribution and benefit payment services.

In the Japanese market, Mercer believes it is the first firm headquartered outside Japan to provide comprehensive services on pension plan management, including plan design and accounting valuation. At the same time, the agreement will allow ORIX to expand its corporate pension business to non-Japanese multinationals operating in Japan. Many of these are Mercer clients. Together, the two firms will offer an integrated service model that has many advantages compared with dealing with multiple providers.

The collaboration agreement comes at a time when legal requirements are changing for defined benefit corporate pension plans in Japan. The Tax Qualified Pension Plan (TQPP) will be abolished in March 2012. The change will affect pension plans sponsored by 25,441 companies in Japan with approximately 348 million participants*. While companies have the option of continuing a TQPP plan, they will have new options, including terminating such plans and transitioning to a defined contribution pension plan, a defined benefit pension plan or a Smaller Enterprise Retirement Allowance Mutual Aid plan. If a company decides to abolish its current plan and adopt a newly permitted alternative, Mercer and ORIX are prepared to support these transition needs as a comprehensive advisor and administrator.

About Mercer
Mercer is a leading global provider of consulting, outsourcing and investment services. Mercer works with clients to solve their most complex benefit and human capital issues, designing and helping manage health, retirement and other benefits. It is a leader in benefit outsourcing. Mercer’s investment services include investment consulting and multi-manager investment management. Mercer’s 19,000 employees are based in more than 40 countries. The company is a wholly owned subsidiary of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc., which lists its stock (ticker symbol: MMC) on the New York, Chicago and London stock exchanges. For more information, visit www.mercer.com or www.mercer.co.jp.

About ORIX
ORIX Corporation (TSE: 8591; NYSE: IX) is an integrated financial services group based in Tokyo Japan, providing innovative value-added products and services to both corporate and retail customers. With operations in 26 countries and regions worldwide, ORIX’s activities include corporate financial services, such as leases and loans, as well as automobile operations, rental operations, real estate-related finance, real estate, life insurance, and investment banking

News Source : Mercer, ORIX Corporation to provide funding valuation services for Japanese corporate pension plansNew service anticipates changing legislation in 2012 in the Japanese pension market