Pension plan membership in Ontario increased year-over-year to 4.8 million in 2025 and David Bartucci, head of pension plan operations and regulatory effectiveness at the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario, says it’s a welcome surprise.
“We’ve invested energy in the Pension Awareness Day [campaign and] to see an increase in the number of people who are participating in pension plans, I think that’s great.”
Read: Ontario DB plans’ average solvency ratio stays flat at 124% in Q4 2025: FSRA
According to the regulator’s third annual overview report for Ontario-based pension plans, membership trends are showing continued diversification across pension plan types covered under the FSRA.
The report also found total pension assets reached nearly $916 billion, reflecting year-over-year growth of about five per cent. It noted defined benefit plans account for 82 per cent of the total with $753 billion in assets, followed by combination plans (14 per cent) holding $125 billion and defined contribution plans (four per cent) with $38 billion.
“Some of our largest pension plans continue to be big plans, both in terms of the number of members and especially the assets they hold. But we’re seeing growth in a number of different areas.”
Bartucci points to the growth in DC plan membership compared to last year and an ongoing trend of multi-employer pension plans converting to target-benefit plans due to legislation introduced in 2025.
Last year, there were 4,047 active pension plans regulated by the FSRA with the majority being DC (2,714), followed by DB (844) and combination plans (489). At the end of 2025, pension plans reported 198,405 missing members, representing a total dollar value of $3.8 billion in benefits.
Bartucci also notes proposed provincial legislation could help pension plan sponsors in their search for missing members. In its 2026 budget, the Ontario government outlined a plan to relieve plan administrators of costs related to unlocatable plan members aged 100 and older. Plan administrators would be required to conduct additional searches for these unlocatable members, which would be followed by a prescribed waiting period. Administrators could then apply to the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario for approval to receive a discharge. This initiative would also benefit pension plan members, as plan costs are paid from pension assets, the budget said.
Read: FSRA releases final guidance on Ontario’s target-benefit pension plan framework