All articles by Julie Henderson – Page 2
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NewsConservative Romanian pensions continue to make gains
ROMANIA - Romanian pension funds posted strong average returns of at least 9% in the first three months of this year thanks to gains in both the local listed stocks and bonds markets and , according to data published by the Romanian pensions regulator, the CSSPP and interpreted by the Romanian pension fund association, APAPR.
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NewsWednesday people roundup
GLOBAL – Strathclyde Pension Fund, Railpen Investments, Union Bancaire Privée, Prime Rate Capital Management, Six Group, PensionsFirst Analytics, GE Capital Real Estate.
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NewsCadbury members offered new pension scheme or pay freeze
UK – Kraft, the new owner of chocolate manufacturer Cadbury, is attempting to woo staff away from the final salary pension fund and into a career average scheme by warning those who do not move could face a three-year pay freeze.
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NewsMaking pensions mandatory is vital to Czech Republic - OECD
CZECH REPUBLIC – Pensions is by far the most important issue the Czech Republic has to tackle over the coming years, according to the OECD, as the absence of any policy change on age-related spending will drastically increase public debt.
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NewsABP spurs micro credit interest with Grassroots investment
NETHERLANDS - ABP, the giant industry pension fund for Dutch civil servants, has raised its interest again in microfinance initiatives and invested $30m in a global private equity microfinance fund from Grassroots Capital.
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NewsPension funds set out quest to find equity and bond managers
IPE-QUEST – Pensions institutions are still searching for the ability to invest substantial sums in equities and bonds, as IPE-Quest currently has four tenders outstanding for investment managers.
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Features
EC’s pensions paper aims ‘unclear’
Pensions are on the European Commission’s radar again, and three divisions have been given the task of preparing a Green Paper on the creation of an EU framework for pensions by the middle of this year. Pension fund bodies and consultants say they welcome the move to talk about encouraging pensions savings. But there is apprehension about the possible content and concerns about the Commission’s aims, in part because there appears to be a degree of urgency to the process.
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NewsFRR promotes Aurain to CIO
FRANCE – Philippe Aurain will become chief investment officer at the French national pension reserve fund (FRR) from tomorrow, replacing Nicolas Sobczak.
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NewsWednesday people roundup
GLOBAL – Assogestioni, Lexam Partners, APG, Mercer, Zurich Group, SSGA, BNY Mellon, SLI, VAM Funds, Veritas AM.
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NewsWM universe sees Dutch pensions generate 14.6%
NETHERLANDS – A study of over 100 Dutch pension funds has found the average pension fund saw a “partial recovery” in 2009 thanks in the main to a rise in the value of assets, led by equities, rather than from a decrease in liabilities.
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NewsImminent EC corporate governance code raises pension hackles
EUROPE – The European Commission is understood to be preparing a green paper on corporate governance in the wake of the financial crisis, but pension fund bodies are concerned that investors will be subject to onerous legislation.
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NewsEC seeks changes to Belgian and French tax rules
BELGIUM – The European Commission has begun the first stage of proceedings against the Belgian and French governments to try and reform their tax terms on pensions.
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NewsWednesday people roundup
GLOBAL – Etera Mutual Insurance Company, Close Asset Management, GSAM State Street, Olive Tree Securities, Strategic Insight, Religare Enterprises Ltd.
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NewsEC pensions green paper to carry focus on transparency and knowledge
EUROPE – Transparency, member information, investment strategy and governance are all key elements that will fall under the spotlight of the European Commission’s consultation on a European pensions framework, according to Karel van Hulle, head of the insurance and pensions unit for the EC’s DG of internal market and services.
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NewsEFRP 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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NewsUK MPs seek a pensions stand on tar sands resolution
UK – MPs will today pose questions in the UK House of Commons asking its own Parliamentary Pension Fund to back a responsible investment campaign concerning the collection of tar sands by energy firms.
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NewsIAS19 pension charge to hit at a lower level than first proposed
GLOBAL – Reported pension costs will rise on a corporate sponsor’s profit and loss account under revised International Accounting Standards Board proposals. However, this higher charge is the lesser of two evils, according to Hewitt Associates, as earlier proposals would have cost substantially more.
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NewsWednesday people roundup
GLOBAL – Henderson GI, Brown Brothers Harriman, CP Eaton Partners, Tokio Marine AM, PensionsFirst Analysis, Cordea Savills, Aviva Investors, Liquidnet.
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NewsStudy to uncover impact of climate change on pension funds
GLOBAL - Fourteen pension fund investors and asset owners have signed up to conduct a study with Mercer Consulting to find out what impact climate change will have on the risk and return potential of pension funds.
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NewsFinnish government funds made best of bonds in 2009
FINLAND – Keva, the Local Government Pensions Institution, and VER, the Finnish State Pension Fund, have both shown bonds played a key role in the returns generated from investments in 2009, yet alternatives delivered a mixed result.
