NETHERLANDS – Hewitt Associates says the transfer of Philips’ Dutch pension administration should be completed by the end of the year.

“The entire transition of data and the implementation process is expected to be complete by the end of the calendar year, by which time 140 of Hewitt's associates will be working at the same location as the 90 affected employees of PPCC [Philips Pensions Competence_Centre],” the consulting firm said.

It has now officially completed the acquisition of the pension administration business from the electronics giant that was announced earlier this year. That deal also involved Merrill Lynch Investment Managers taking over around €12bn of Philips’ pension assets.

“With this acquisition, Hewitt is now one of Europe's leading providers of pension administration services, serving more than 1.4m,” Hewitt stated.

It has bought the pensions administration activities that are part of Philips Pensions Competence Centre, which services around 165,000 scheme members.

"The completion of this deal marks a milestone for Hewitt, not just in the Netherlands, but in Europe,” said Paul Howes, general manager for Hewitt in the Netherlands.

“The Dutch pension market is the second biggest in Europe and through this acquisition Hewitt is well positioned for growth in the Netherlands.

“This means that Hewitt is now a significant player in pensions administration in the five largest European markets: UK, Switzerland, Belgium, Ireland and the Netherlands."