All IPE articles in March 2009 (Online) – Page 7
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NewsJohn Lewis sees leap in DB scheme demand
[16:20 CET 11-03] UK – John Lewis Partnership, the high street chain, saw over 11,000 employees, or ‘partners’ as they are known within the firm, join its defined benefit last year when the terms were changed to open further access.
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NewsConsultant expects little from pension reform talk
[15:50 CET 11-03] AUSTRIA – Kurt Bednar, occupational pension expert with international consultancy Funk, is sceptical about the recently implemented reform commission for Austria’s pensionskassen system and claims discussions are unlikely to come to any useful conclusion.
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NewsFI flags potential risk control issues
[15:40 CET 11-03] SWEDEN – Swedish occupational pension funds generally have no large holdings of complex financial instruments, although in a few cases the Finansinspektionen (FI) has highlighted possible deficiencies in related risk control functions.
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NewsWednesday people roundup
[15:30 CET 11-03] GLOBAL - People roundup: Hermes, Schroders, FSA, TPR, F&C, HSBC, APG AM, ICFR, GAD, BSAM, Aviva Investors, Chi-X, Governance for Owners, Adveq, Etienne Rougier, Sackers
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NewsFidelity loses Tyne & Wear's UK mandate
[17:15 CET 10-03] UK – The £3bn (€3.25bn) Tyne & Wear Pension Fund has confirmed it terminated its UK equity mandate with Fidelity at the end of last year.
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NewsMP's call to curb banker's pensions
[17:15 CET 10-03] UK – A Bill designed to limit the pension provision of board members of banks wholly or partly owned by the state is being introduced to Parliament today.
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NewsNine in 10 UK DB schemes are now in deficit
[17:10 CET 10-03] UK – Over 90% of UK defined benefit (DB) schemes are underfunded as the aggregate funding position of almost 7,800 schemes reported a deficit of £218.7bn (€237.3bn) at the end of February.
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NewsASIP supports cut to conversion rate
[17:05 CET 10-03] SWITZERLAND – The Swiss pension fund association ASIP has waded into the debate on lowering the conversion rate in the second pillar and told unions their demands would lead to a collapse of the system.
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NewsF&C saw assets drop ahead of independence
[17:00 CET 10-03] EUROPE – F&C Asset Management executives have admitted drumming up business was difficult in 2008 while its ownership was in question but hope the firm’s status as a soon-to-become independent entity will boost its business potential over the coming months.
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NewsCrisis increases demands on consultants
[16:00 CET 10-03] EUROPE – Pensions and investment consultants say they now expect to face higher scrutiny of their own services by clients as well as challenges to the advice they give, as a result of the recent financial crisis.
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NewsFRR still in search of US equity manager
[15:15 CET 10-03] FRANCE – FRR, the €27bn French national reserve pension fund, has signed seven firms to manage equities mandates worth €2.3bn, but is still searching for a suitable manager to take care of a €800m US equities active value account.
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NewsIrish not in position to offer PPF
[17:15 CET 09-03] IRELAND – The Irish government has admitted it is “not in a position” to offer occupational defined benefit (DB) the protection of a state guarantee from a pension protection fund.
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NewsTeachers to take action over Irish levy
[7:10 CEt 09-03] IRELAND – Members of three teachers unions have voted in favour of industrial action, including strikes, over the government's handling of the economic crisis including the introduction of the "pension levy".
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NewsVBV severance pay fund returns -0.17%
[17:10 CET 09-03] AUSTRIA – The VBV-Vorsorgekasse, the severance pay fund offered by Austria’s largest Pensionskasse, has performed better than the market average in 2008.
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NewsE-based personal accounts need member education
[17:00 CET 09-03] UK – The pensions and investment industry has warned a 'self-service' e-approach to personal account members investment decisions risks "underestimating" the challenges involved in educating consumers.
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NewsCrisis forces pensions measures back to gilts
[16:55 CET 09-03] UK – Hewitt Associates has conducted a study of 50 pension fund clients which suggests all will in future base their defined benefit funding assumptions on a gilts-based measure, even though it could increase liabilities by up to 30%.
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NewsWestminster re-tenders advice contracts
[16:55 CET 09-03] UK – The City of Westminster Council has initiated a search for providers of investment and actuarial advice to its local government pension scheme (LGPS).
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NewsEC admits 'pensions are not immune to crisis'
[16:25 CET 09-03] EUROPE – European pension funds have not suffered during the ongoing economic crisis in the same way as other financial institutions, according to the European Commission, but defined benefit schemes in particular are likely to see “challenges” as they struggle to pull back their funding balances.
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NewsTwo KLM schemes fail to land on target
[14:45 CET 09-03] NETHERLANDS - Two of three pension funds of KLM, the airline, have seen their cover ratios decrease by up to 10% below the required minimum.
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NewsLocal authorities hold over €1bn in Icelandic banks
[17:05 CET 06-03] UK – Local authorities in England have reported investments totalling £923.2m (€1.03bn) in Icelandic banks at the end of 2008, some of which may have been held on behalf of pension funds.
