SWEDEN - Moderna Liv & Pension, a Swedish insurer and fund provider, will no longer be on the ITP list of pension and insurance providers eligible to manage occupational pensions from July 1, 2010 for at least a three-year mandate period.

Collectum, the administrator of the system, is currently reviewing the 16 applicants who have replied to the ITP membership tender process, and will reveal the final list of pension providers on 19 January.

Moderna is just the latest firm to discover it cannot deliver pensions through the ITp, at least for the foreseeable future, as SPP recently claimed it would not be able eligible for pension provision from July 1, 2010 because active managers were being favoured. (See earlier IPE story: SPP to withdraw from Sweden's ITP system)

Michael Gunnarsson, deputy chief executive of Moderna Liv & Pension, said the company has not been told the reason why it will not be among the pension providers.

"We assume that fees have been a deciding factor. We made a conscious decision not to reduce the quality of our offering. Our bid with selected external funds, our individually-tailored solution and the possibility of receiving advice from insurance brokers has obviously not carried enough weight in Collectum's decision-making process," he said.

He further argued that although focusing on fees is a key element of Collectum's decision-making, performance should not be forgotten as it is important when calculating the size of pensions.

"We think it is regrettable that those customers who selected us will now have to make a new selection only after a few years," he said.

He also noted that the reselection process will incur administrative fees, which the employees will have to pay through higher fees to Collectum.

He added Moderna will continue to work through insurance brokers and will aim to challenge the pensions industry with its offering and business model.

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