ABSTRACT
In this chapter we examine the linkages between pension regimes and national financial systems.Welfare state regimes shape the accumulation of pension savings by shaping the mix of public and private pension provision, as well as by regulating investment policies of private pension capital. We compare marketbased pension regimes in Britain and the USA (combining low public pensions and externalised private pension provision) with solidaristic regimes in Germany and Japan (combining high public pensions and organisationally embedded private pensions). The theoretical background concerns the distinction between bankbased (Germany-Japan) versus securities-based financial systems (UK-USA) in different ‘varieties of capitalism’ (Albert 1993; Crouch and Streeck 1997), as well as stakeholder-versus shareholder-oriented corporate governance.
