UK - The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals has appointed Threadneedle Asset Management to run its 68 million-pound (100 million-euro) balanced pension scheme, resulting in a loss for Schroder Investment Management.

"This is a balanced mandate which will utilise a wide range of Threadneedle's pooled pension funds including those investing in the UK, North America, Europe, Pacific Basin and Japanese equities as well as index-linked and long-dated bonds," Threadneedle said.

It added it would aim to outperform a composite benchmark by one per cent a year.

"We are delighted to have been chosen by the RSPCA to manage this important mandate on behalf of their pension fund," said Mark Stanley, head of Threadneedle's institutional business.

"We have continued to see significant inflows and growing success in all areas of our institutional business - defined benefit, defined contribution and insurance asset management - in spite of the difficult markets.

"We believe that Threadneedle's experience and skills will deliver the tough targets that we have set," said RSPCA director of finance Mark Watts.

"We continued to manage their charity funds and they remain a valued client," said Schroders spokesman Julian Samways, adding the firm manages 60 million pounds of the RSPCA's charity money.

Consultant to the scheme was Hewitt Bacon & Woodrow, Threadneedle said.