All IPE articles in October 2009 (Online) – Page 6
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NewsITV plans to use subsidiary as contingent asset
[16:45 CEST 13-10] UK – ITV, the UK commercial television station, has revealed it is in discussions with the trustees of its £2.15bn (€2.29bn) defined benefit (DB) scheme to use the assets of its wholly owned subsidiary SDN Limited to help plug the growing pension deficit.
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NewsGermany's BDA wants risk-based pensions levy
[16:40 CEST 13-10] GERMANY – Switching to a risk-based levy for the German pension insolvency lifeboat Pensionssicherungsverein could help to considerably reduce contributions to the scheme in the long-run, according to Alexander Gunkel from the German federation of employer representatives.
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NewsUK DB funding roundup: deficits reduced in September
[16:15 CEST 13-10] UK – Increases in asset values and higher gilt yields improved the aggregate funding position of UK defined benefit (DB) schemes by almost £25bn (€26.7bn) to leave deficits at £148.9bn at the end of September, according to the Pension Protection Fund (PPF).
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NewsSBZ in talks with Syntrus Achmea
[15:50 CEST 13-10] NETHERLANDS - SBZ, the €2.2bn pension fund for Dutch care insurer employees, is in exclusive talks with Syntrus Achmea to contract out its benefits administration as well as its trustee support office.
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NewsUK trustees are 'confused' about fiduciary concept - Mn
[15:30 CEST 13-10] UK - UK pension trustees misunderstand the fiduciary management concept if they award mandates for part of the portfolio, according to Remco van Eeuwijk of Mn Services.
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NewsTurkish pensions may open to diversity
TURKEY - Turkey’s TRY8.5bn (€3.93bn) pension industry could see an expanded range of investment vehicles in the near future in a bid to widen diversification and returns potential, according to the Turkish regulator.
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NewsErste creates AM umbrella and targets CEE
[17:15 CEST 12-10] AUSTRIA – The banking and management group Erste has created Erste Asset Management(EAM), a new umbrella to combine all of its asset management business in Austria and the CEE region.
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NewsAer Lingus eyes DC scheme to avoid major balance sheet damage
[16:55 CEST 10-12] IRELAND – Aer Lingus is proposing to introduce a new defined contribution scheme for all staff in an attempt to avoid having to change its accounting practices to defined benefit (DB) rules that would add "significant" liabilities to its balance sheet.
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NewsMerseyside keeps L&G and Schroders for fixed income
[16:50 CEST 12-10] UK – The £4.1bn (€4.4bn) Merseyside pension fund has retained its two fixed income managers to run a portfolio valued at around £372m, or 9% of the scheme's assets.
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NewsLAPFF re-tenders engagement contract
[16:50 CEST 12-10] UK – The Local Authority Pension Fund Forum (LAPFF) is seeking a third-party provider to promote and assist the LAPFF's shareholder activism.
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NewsHewitt's Tunningley turns attention to global strategy
[16:40 CEST 12-10] GLOBAL – Andrew Tunningley, head of Hewitt’s UK investment practice, has taken up a new role as global strategy leader, to review both the company’s business potential and create an oversight role to clients’ global investment issues.
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NewsShell's UK pension to expand alternatives
[16:00 CEST 12-10] UK – The £10.5bn Shell UK pension fund has completed a strategic review of its investment strategy which is likely to see the fund invest another 5% of its assets in alternatives.
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NewsEssex appoints Fidelity for global equities
[17:10 CEST 09-10] UK – The £2.2bn (€2.37bn) Essex Pension Fund has appointed Fidelity International as an active global equity manager.
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NewsTax changes to Icelandic pensions could be 'hazardous'
[17:05 CEST 09-10] ICELAND – Proposals by the opposition political party, the Independence Party, to alter the taxation of pension fund savings has been described as "hazardous" by both the Icelandic Pension Funds Association (IPFA) and the Confederation of Icelandic Employers (SA).
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NewsSFE tenders for pension provider but mulls own fund
[17:00 CEST 09-10] NORWAY – Sogn og Fjordane Energi AS (SFE), the Norwegian energy company, is re-tendering for a pension provider for its defined benefit (DB) occupational scheme, but is considering the possibility of joining with other energy companies to establish their own pension investment fund.
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NewsRomania aims for pension reforms by December
ROMANIA – Draft pension reform laws, including increases in retirement age and elimination of 'special' pensions of certain public sector workers, has been published by the Romanian government with the aim of implementing it by the end of December to comply with agreements with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
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NewsFSP lifted by high returns in Q3
[17:00 CEST 09-10] DENMARK - Holdings in emerging markets and corporate bonds boosted investment returns for the market-linked pensions of Denmark’s Finanssektorens Pensionskasse (FSP), the fund said, reporting strong third quarter performance figures.
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NewsWest Midlands finds route into hedge funds after all
[16L45 CEST 09-10] UK – The West Midlands local authority pension fund has extended its alternatives and equities investment strategy and allocated £40m (€44) to a fund of hedge funds.
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NewsDiscount rates needs to be realistic - ERAFP
[16:30 CEST 09-10] FRANCE – Officials at the ERAFP pension scheme have raised concerns that pension funds may be pricing their schemes’ asset allocation strategy at too high a discount rate to be achievable and argue this may have contributed to the recent market crisis because the high returns needed ...
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NewsNBIM raises concerns over VW Porsche deal
[17:05 CEST 08-10] NORWAY – Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM) has warned it will not support Volkswagen's investment in Porsche unless the VW Supervisory Board "takes steps to alleviate our concerns" relating to conflicts of interest and shareholder treatment.
