European superfund ABP scooped the board at the 2003 IPE-Awards in Amsterdam on November 20th by carrying off no fewer than five of the trophies - including the coveted Gold award for European Pension Fund of the Year.
The incredible haul by the Dutch public pension fund for government, education and defence sector workers, included the IPE Silver Award for European Public Sector Fund of the Year and two ‘themed’ awards for innovation in the fields of SRI and Risk Management. The scheme also picked up the gong for best Dutch pension plan.
The awards were made at a glittering ceremony in the Amsterdam Convention Factory in front of an audience of more than 450 of Europe’s top pensions and investment professionals.
The IPE-Awards judges - a panel of leading European investment professionals – praised ABP for its ability to react quickly and effectively in these turbulent times, as one judge commented: “Despite being the largest and opinion leading European/
Dutch pension fund, it acts and moves well in times of change.”
Another judge noted that ABP: “arguably has the strongest future potential for European excellence.”
It was a good night for the Dutch in their capital city.
The IPE-Award for Outstanding Industry Contribution in 2003 went to European Commissioner, Dutchman Frits Bolkestein, whose remit of internal market, taxation and customs union, not only includes the pan-European Pensions Directive, which he championed and brought to fruition earlier this year, but also the tax infringement procedures currently facing non-compliant EU member states.
Sharing the IPE Silver Awards with ABP on the night were the UK’s BT Pension Scheme (BTPS), winner of the award for Corporate Pension Plan of the year, which the judges praised as: “A big private DB pension fund which has to manage a great business with increasing demands and challenges.” Germany’s MetallRente, the pension fund for employees of the country’s metal and electrical industries, claimed the Silver Award for Industry-Wide Scheme of the year, with the judges haling its position as “A leading pension fund in Germany,” despite the fact that it has only been in operation for two years. “The management of MetallRente looks very sophisticated and deserves an appropriate ranking,” the judges added.