UK - The £540m (€747m) London Borough of Newham Pension Fund has appointed JPMorgan to manage an £15m active currency portfolio.

JPMorgan Asset Management said the money will be invested in the JPMorgan Managed Currency Plus Fund and will be funded mainly from the £14.8m of cash reserves held by the fund.

Newham is the latest in a long line of local government pension schemes to diversify its portfolio into currency investment.

Last week, the £1.1bn Lincolnshire County Council Pension Fund said it was seeking a currency overlay manager for a new £180m mandate.

A spokeswoman for the council in the east of England commented: "I think it is one of those flavours of the month: a lot of authorities over the past few month have been looking at currency."

The fund is currently looking for an infrastructure manager.