Analysis of the Russian National Wealth Fund potential for financing expanded pension programs in the context of contemporary challenges

The Russian National Welfare Fund of Russia (hereinafter referred to as the Fund) is an important instrument for ensuring financial stability and long-term economic security of the state. In the context of demographic changes and the funds shortage to finance the pension system, there is a need to find additional sources of financing, including through the effective use of the Fund. The relevance of the study lies in the need for a rethinking approach to the use of the Fund’s resources to solve the issues of long-term social security in Russia. The purpose of the study is to assess the potential of the Fund for financing extended pension provision programs in the context of modern challenges and global experience of sovereign fund management. To achieve the purpose, the methods of comparative analysis, modeling of financial needs of the pension provision system, and the Fund’s existing investment strategy analysis were used. It has been established that the current size of the Fund is insufficient to cover the pension system deficit in the long term. Key limitations for the Fund’s effective investment in the Russian financial market have been identified. The study results have shown that in order to realize the goals of pension financing it is necessary to significantly increase the capital of the Fund and revise its investment policy. Ways to optimize the investment strategy, including diversification of assets and internal financial instruments development for long-term savings, have been proposed. It has been concluded that comprehensive changes in the Fund’s management are necessary, including political and economic measures aimed at increasing its capitalization and improving the efficiency of its assets use.