Investor Strategy – Page 129
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News
USS to push for Dutch takeover changes in light of Océ concerns
UK/NETHERLANDS - Hermes Focus Asset Management and the £28bn (€31.3bn) Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS) have agreed to tender their shares in Océ as part of a takeover bid of the company by rival printing firm Canon.
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Dutch pensions sector recovery is still far off - DNB
NETHERLANDS - Pensions regulator De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB) has warned the Dutch pensions sector has a long way to go to a full recovery, despite no longer being seriously underfunded.
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PMI and Standard Life team up on DC pensions research
UK – The Pensions Management Institute (PMI) is joining forces with Standard Life to research alternative methods of providing adequate ways to save for retirement, starting with analysis of existing defined contribution (DC) provision.
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EFRP survey: DC pension contributions need to rise
EUROPE – Approximately one in four workers in the European Union are now members of defined contribution pension schemes. But serious work is still needed to raise contributions as the distribution of assets is very different to the location of active members, a survey by the European Federation for Retirement Provision (EFRP) has found.
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NewsPersistence more important than risk in NEST early years
UK – Encouraging people to stay in the new National Employment Savings Trust (NEST) by minimising volatility is more important than taking a lot of risk with investments at the start, according to the Personal Accounts Delivery Authority (PADA).
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UK roundup: Tower Hamlets, Powys, RBKC, Nestlé UK, Leeds University, Quarriers, DWP
UK – The London Borough of Tower Hamlets has dropped Aberdeen Asset Management as a bond manager from its pension scheme, while Powys County Council is increasing its equity allocation and the Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea is seeking a global equity manager.
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Dutch bakers’ scheme picks Lombard as fiduciary manager
NETHERLANDS - The €2bn pension fund for the bakery sector has appointed Swiss asset manager Lombard Odier Darier Hentsch (LODH) as its new fiduciary manager.
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ADIA returns average 8% over 30 years
GLOBAL – The investment returns of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) amounted to 8% annualised in dollar terms over the 30 years to end-December 2009, and 6.5% over 20 years. This is according to the authority’s first annual report since its inception in its present form in 1976.
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NewsDutch pension assets increased to €649bn – DNB
NETHERLANDS - The combined value of pension funds’ investments increased for the fourth consecutive quarter in 2009 to €649bn, pensions supervisor De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB) has claimed.
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Underfunding prompts Mercer to question the future of Irish pensions
IRELAND – A pensions expert has called on firms to consider whether the costs and risks of DB schemes are still affordable, as a study has found 80% Irish defined benefit (DB) pension plans are underfunded, and 15% are likely to wind-up because of funding difficulties.
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UK pensions allocate $300m to Bermudan catastrophe risk hedge fund
UK - Eleven UK pension funds allocated a total of $340m (€373m) to a $2.6bn catastrophe reinsurance strategy run by Bermuda-based Nephila Capital in the second half of 2009.
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PPF to diversify investment strategy from equities to alternatives
UK – The Pension Protection Fund (PPF) is diversifying its investment strategy by halving its equity allocation in favour of a 20% strategic allocation to alternatives, such as private equity and infrastructure.
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Longevity market needs to show depth and maturity, say pension execs
UK – Pensions executives have raised concerns about the growth of the longevity hedging market, as some individuals are concerned about whether there is enough capacity and transparency in the market to assist the majority of pension plans.
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News
IAS19 could force sponsors to push for lower risk strategies
GLOBAL – Changes to international accounting rule IAS19 pension rules could force many sponsors and corporates to encourage lower risk pension strategies, as reforms could mean they are no longer rewarded for taking risks under the 'expected return on assets' portion of their profit and loss accounts.
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AllianceBernstein considers target date income drawdown
UK – Alliance Bernstein is investigating the development of income drawdown in retirement, which might follow a target date investment approach so investors continue to make gains on their holdings.
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Pension fund considers inflation-linked bonds and absolute returns
IPE-QUEST – A pension fund based in Europe is conducting a search for asset managers to look after euro-denominated inflation-linked debt and absolute return mandates, using IPE-Quest.
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Franklin Templeton to manage listed Romanian compensation fund
ROMANIA - Franklin Templeton has been appointed as the investment manager for a €2.4bn property compensation fund, set up by the Romanian government, to compensate people who lost their homes during former Communist rule.
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Pension fund trust in external management 'has returned'
AUSTRIA/GERMANY – Asset managers saw major outflows from institutional investors in 2008, but some pension funds are now expected to increase the share of externally-managed assets in their portfolios.
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Dutch pension talks sought in the wake of cabinet collapse
NETHERLANDS - Social partners see new possibilities for an agreement on pensions, in the wake of the collapsed Dutch coalition government.
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ASIP hopes for mood change on Swiss referendum
SWITZERLAND – The Swiss pension fund association ASIP is "hoping for a mood swing" in public opinion, just days before the Swiss referendum on the pension conversion rate, its president Christoph Ryter has told IPE.
