German dentists face pension collapse after fund’s risky bets backfire
Around 11,000 dentists in Berlin, Brandenburg, and Bremen are facing uncertainty over their pensions after their fund, the Zahnarzt-Rentenkasse, lost half its assets. The crisis stems from high-risk investments made by the fund, including a failed bet on the now-insolvent startup Element. Legal battles have since erupted over the dismissal of the fund’s supervisory board chair, who refuses to step down.
By 2018, the pension fund had shifted its strategy toward riskier assets in response to low interest rates. This move backfired when investments, including one in the troubled startup Element, collapsed. The fund’s losses reached roughly 50% of its total holdings, leaving dentists worried about their future payments.
In April, the chair of the supervisory board was dismissed in a process compared to a vote of no confidence. The former chair contested the decision, filing an objection and taking the case to court. Initially, the Berliner Senatsverwaltung für Wissenschaft, Gesundheit und Pflege ruled the dismissal unlawful, but it did not pursue further action. The Berlin Administrative Court later found that a loss of confidence in the chair’s leadership could justify removal. Despite this, the former chair continues to challenge the ruling, prolonging the dispute. No public announcement from the Senate in May 2023 addressed the ongoing conflict.
The pension fund’s high-risk strategy has left dentists in three states facing financial insecurity. With legal proceedings still unresolved, the fund’s leadership remains in limbo. The outcome will determine whether the dismissed chair must leave and how the fund plans to recover its losses.
