Julie Henderson
- Features
EFRP surveys workplace pensions
Julie Henderson reports on the results of EFRP research into the state of workplace defined contribution schemes across Europe
NewsBabcock Intl. hires Insight for new LDI mandate
UK – The £2bn Babcock International pension fund has hired Insight Investment as liability-driven investment (LDI) manager following a beauty parade.
NewsGoldman’s troubles to worsen as pension fund class actions loom
GLOBAL – Investment bank Goldman Sachs is expected to face yet more pressure over its recent activity in collateral debt obligations (CDOs) as a legal firm says work on class actions, alleging the firm failed to disclose material information affecting its share price, could begin against the investment bank within ...
NewsWednesday people roundup (updated)
GLOBAL – National Pensions Reserve Fund Commission, Schroders, Mercer, Pitman Trustees, Corestate Capital, Brookfield Investment Management, SEK Enskilda Equities, Bl;uefin Corporate Consulting.
News'Packaged passive' investment could address DC risk - study
EUROPE – Members of defined contribution pension schemes might in future be more confident about their investments if strategies were based more around “packaged passive funds”, suggest panelists contributing to a DC study.
NewsBasel framework needs pension fund input - academic
EUROPE - An academic with specialist knowledge of financial regulation has advised MEPs to expand the Basel agreement and in future include pension funds among the groups of investors who should be consulted in a financial crisis long-term regulatory review.
NewsPension funds could turn to DIY buyouts
UK – Corporate employers are keen to de-risk their defined benefit plan pension arrangements through a buy-in or buyout But research suggests the big worry for many is whether they have the assets to finance it, so they may turn to do-it-yourself methods.
NewsCoughlin & Co heads class action settlements law firms in 2009
GLOBAL -Coughlin Stoia Geller Rudman & Robbins was involved in the most shareholder class action settlements in 2009 and handled the most compensation to shareholder as a result, according to research conducted by RiskMetrics.
NewsPension funds lose oil sands campaign against BP
GLOBAL – Pension fund campaigners have just lost the latest battle with BP, the oil giant, to gain more financial, environmental and social information on the impact of extracting oil sands.
NewsCrastes is among senior staff to leave Amundi London
FRANCE/UK – Bruno Crastes, the CEO of Amundi UK, and two other key London managers have resigned their posts at the asset manager created through the merger of Credit Agricole Asset Management and Société Générale.
NewsState Street and PensionsFirst alliance to provide pensions risk testing
GLOBAL – State Street Corporation and PensionsFirst Analytics are teaming up to provide State Street’s clients with access to PFaroe’s online software, to allow trustees and corporates to run real-time diagnostics and testing on defined benefit pension fund risk.
NewsUK pensions regulator to find new chief
UK – Tony Hobman, chief executive of The Pensions Regulator, is leaving next month to take the top job at a new education body for the UK financial services industry.
NewsIrish DC pension members show more caution than DB trustees
IRELAND – Irish defined contribution investors are still more cautious about investing their pension assets than defined benefit trustees, but have yet to follow the trend of moving towards passive investment, suggests evidence presented by the Irish Association of Pension Funds (IAPF).
NewsWednesday people roundup (updated)
GLOBAL – Barnett Waddingham, T. Rowe Price, Frankline Templeton, LGIM, Atkin & Co.
NewsUK DB schemes hit first surplus since 2008
UK – The volatility of pension fund accounting showed itself strongly again last month. But the news is positive for the first time since June 2008 as the aggregated funding level of UK defined benefit funds hit a £300m (€340.4m) surplus in March.
NewsAlternatives to play a greater role in AP1 strategy
SWEDEN – Swedish pension buffer AP1 is planning to allocate more of its assets to alternatives as part of its long-term reforms, even though this asset class generated a negative return in 2009.
NewsNPRF gets new investment director
IRELAND – Eugene O’Callaghan, current head of the investment manager programme at the National Pensions Reserve Fund, has just been named as the new investment director of Ireland’s sovereign pension fund.
NewsUK regulator attacks poor pensions switching advice
UK – The UK’s Financial Services Authority is increasing its focus on the advice given to pension policyholders when switching to another provider, as its investigations have found members are still receiving a high level of “unsuitable advice”.
NewsUK roundup: Lincolnshire, Essex
UK – Lincolnshire County Council has instigated a major shift in the asset allocation of its pension fund as the planning to invest between 10-15% of its assets in a single portfolio of alternatives while Essex is looking to invest in infrastructure.
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NewsOil sands resolution continues to gain pensions support
GLOBAL – Several major US pension funds and Australian superannuation investors are the latest players to back a call for BP to report further information on the implications of extracting oil from tar sands.
