SPECIAL REPORT: America's Looming Pension Crisis - It's Worse Than You Imagine | Stephanie Pomboy

Apr 23, 2025

Ted Siedle, a former SEC attorney and pension expert, teams up with macroeconomist Stephanie Pomboy to tackle America's dire pension crisis. They unveil alarming statistics about underfunded systems and reckless investment practices that threaten retirees. The duo emphasizes the need for reform, transparency, and accountability, while uncovering the hidden costs of private investments. They also address misconceptions surrounding 401k plans and present a crowdfunding initiative to empower state workers with better pension oversight and planning for a secure retirement.

Ask episode

AI Snips

Chapters

Books

Transcript

Episode notes

INSIGHT

Public Pensions Are Poorly Managed

Public pensions are mostly unregulated at the federal level and run by non-experts.
They increasingly invest in risky alternatives, including up to 10% in crypto, which heightens their vulnerability.

INSIGHT

Mismanagement Devastates Pension Funds

Pension solvency depends on contributions, management, and payouts.
Mismanagement, especially excessive fees over decades, can halve pension fund values through compounding losses.

ANECDOTE

Beanie Babies as Pension Investment

Ohio's state workers' compensation fund invested in Beanie Babies and lost money.
This shows how public pensions can be sold risky, useless investments due to lack of regulation.

Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode

Get the app

America's pensions are in big trouble. Many are underfunded vs their payout commitments. Many are being recklessly managed, overinvested in far too speculative assets for the safety of their constituents.Ted Siedle is a former SEC attorney. His firm, Benchmark Financial Services, Inc. has pioneered over $1 trillion in forensic investigations of the money management industry. He's nationally recognized as an authority on pensions and investment management matters, having testified before the Senate Banking Committee regarding fund scandals and is an expert in various Madoff-related and other litigations.In 2017, he secured the largest SEC whistleblower award in history of $48 million, and in 2018, the largest CFTC award in history at $30 million.Join me and Stephany Pomboy as we interview Ted and take your questions live.WORRIED ABOUT YOUR RETIREMENT? SCHEDULE A FREE PORTFOLIO REVIEW with Thoughtful Money's endorsed financial advisors at https://www.thoughtfulmoney.com_____________________________________________ Thoughtful Money LLC is a Registered Investment Advisor Promoter.We produce educational content geared for the individual investor. It’s important to note that this content is NOT investment advice, individual or otherwise, nor should be construed as such.We recommend that most investors, especially if inexperienced, should consider benefiting from the direction and guidance of a qualified financial advisor registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) or state securities regulators who can develop & implement a personalized financial plan based on a customer’s unique goals, needs & risk tolerance.IMPORTANT NOTE: There are risks associated with investing in securities.Investing in stocks, bonds, exchange traded funds, mutual funds, money market funds, and other types of securities involve risk of loss. Loss of principal is possible. Some high risk investments may use leverage, which will accentuate gains & losses. Foreign investing involves special risks, including a greater volatility and political, economic and currency risks and differences in accounting methods.A security’s or a firm’s past investment performance is not a guarantee or predictor of future investment performance.Thoughtful Money and the Thoughtful Money logo are trademarks of Thoughtful Money LLC.Copyright © 2025 Thoughtful Money LLC. All rights reserved.