Research On The Optimization Scheme Of The Three-Pillar Structure Of China’s Pension Insurance

After more than 30 years of practice and evolution,China’s pension insurance system is now comprised of three pillars: basic pension insurance,enterprise and occupational pensions,and individual pensions.However,due to a variety of factors such as history,culture,economy,and policies,there is a structural imbalance in China’s three pillars of pension insurance system,which is reflected that basic pension insurance is at a high level in terms of coverage,replacement rate,and asset size,whereas the second and third pillars of pension insurance lack development space and grow slowly.At the moment,China is in a crucial time of economic structural transition,and along with the more significant population aging,the structural imbalance of the three pillars of pension insurance poses a bigger risk to the system’s viability.In light of this,structural reforms are critical to promoting the formation,integrity,and sustainability of China’s three-pillar pension insurance system.This study first reviews the literature on the three-pillar structure of pension insurance at home and abroad,then describes the essential theoretical foundations and model foundations before determining the research topic and scope.Next,in the study of China,this paper investigates the process of establishing the three-pillar pension insurance system in China and its structural characteristics,and identifies four reasons for the imbalance of the three-pillar pension insurance system in China,namely,the synergy dilemma,the incentive dilemma,the market dilemma and the cognitive dilemma.To optimize the three-pillar structure system of pension insurance in China,this paper uses OECD data to divide the three-pillar system in the sample economies into two structural types,namely "ladder" and "sigma",based on the relative size of the second and third pillars of pension insurance coverage.Following that,this article compares the two structural models in terms of function,as well as the economies that use the two different structural types in three dimensions: macro,micro,and institutional.Based on this,the United States,a representative economy of the "ladder" structure,and Chile,a representative economy of the "sigma" structure,are chosen to summarize the history and structural characteristics of their respective three-pillar pension systems,as well as to draw lessons for China.These lessons include strengthening the pillars’ interdependence,maintaining a healthy capital market and supporting services,and preventing personal pensions from becoming a tax-avoidance strategy for the wealthy.Finally,given China’s national circumstances,this study,on the one hand,clarifies the positioning of the first pillar as relief,the second pillar as complementary and the third pillar as supportive,on the other hand,claims that the construction of a "sigma" type three-pillar structure is a realistic choice to support the expansion of China’s pension insurance system from three perspectives: feasibility,urgency,and constraints.The study also suggests countermeasures for the development of a synergistic three-pillar pension insurance system from four perspectives: functional positioning,institutional design,incentive mechanism,and market innovation.