Pensions Week articles from April 2009

Pensions Week archives from April 2009

News: Tories seek to postpone override regs.
April 6, 2009... Byline: Tom Willetts David Cameron and senior Conservatives have signed an early day motion to revoke a slew of pensions regulations due to come into force this week. The unusual move could delay the introduction of the Occupational...

News: Flexible Sipp for staff at Morrisons.
April 6, 2009... Byline: David Rowley Supermarket chain Morrisons Group has launched a group self-invested personal pension (Sipp) scheme as an additional savings vehicle for staff. The Sipp is designed to allow members of the Morrisons share save...

This week: Ushering in an era of disclosure.
April 6, 2009... Byline: David Rowley - Editor This is not the first time I have written about Fred Goodwin's pension, and I wish I could say that it would be the last. However, as the demonstrations in the City last week have shown, the whole nation is...

News: Strength of Trafalgar to benefit smaller schemes.
April 6, 2009... Byline: Tom Willetts The GBP1.3bn Trafalgar House Pensions Trust is considering taking on struggling small and medium-sized schemes that lack enough governance to achieve strong investment returns. The scheme, which counts ex-fund...

News: CBI calls for risk pass-through to be rolled out across UK.
April 6, 2009... Byline: Charlie Kirby A private sector employer has refused to employ 225 ex-public sector employees after being posed with their GBP20m pension liability. The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) has said the case has highlighted...

News: Equities' portfolio dominance wanes.
April 6, 2009... Byline: Tom Willetts Equities constituted less than half of the average pension scheme portfolio for the first time last year. The allocation to the asset class fell to a record low of 48.8% at the end of December, while pension...

News: Schemes warned against inertia in investing.
April 6, 2009... Byline: David Rowley A polarisation in scheme results over 2008 has shown the dangers of investment inertia, claims Hewitt Associates. The consultant said the 5% of its pension fund clients that had recorded an average annual return of...

News in brief.
April 6, 2009... The Local Authority Pension Fund Forum has filed a shareholder resolution to force Marks & Spencer to appoint an independent chairman. Sir Stuart Rose became executive chairman of the retailer last year, breaching the combined code on...

News: BoE plan grows by 12% after 2007 equity sale.
April 6, 2009... Byline: Charlie Kirby The Bank of England (BoE) has revealed it liquidated its entire equities portfolio from its pension scheme before the recession hit. Freedom of information papers have disclosed that the action improved its...

News: Volatility increases deficits.
April 6, 2009... Byline: Tom Willetts The aggregate deficit of the UK's defined benefit schemes stood at GBP36bn at the end of March, according to Aon Consulting. However, due to recent stock market rises, this loss could have been far higher had the...

News: Investment comment - Gain access to LDI through pooled funds.
April 6, 2009... Byline: Andrew Giles - Head of financial solutions group, Insight Investment Over the last decade, liability-driven investment (LDI) has become a core consideration in terms of the way pension schemes and their advisers think about...

News: Investors must push for hedge fund clarity.
April 6, 2009... Byline: Charlie Kirby Any improvements in governance for hedge funds should be prompted by investors and not regulators, according to Axa Investment Managers (Axa IM). Chris Manser, global head of fund-of-hedge funds at Axa IM, urged...

News: Advisory body adds voice to calls for emergency savings.
April 6, 2009... Byline: Nick Reeve The Pensions Advisory Service has joined the clamour for employees to be given emergency access to their pension pots. Speaking at the Pensions Management Institute's (PMI) Spring conference, Baroness Hollis,...

News: Recession prompts rise in salary sacrifice.
April 6, 2009... Byline: Owen Walker An increasing number of schemes are looking to trim costs by implementing salary sacrifice arrangements and opting for bundled service provision, according to Fidelity. The provider claimed it had seen a large...

News: Funds team up to push for global green choices.
April 6, 2009... Byline: Tom Willetts Pension schemes have joined forces with institutional investors to urge the world's largest economies to provide more green investment opportunities. In a letter to the prime minister, the investors - which include...

News: Hermes transfers direct portfolio to Bridgepoint.
April 6, 2009... Byline: David Rowley Hermes has exited from direct private equity investment to focus on private equity fund-of-funds. Its GBP550m investments in private equity, of which GBP56m belong to the BT Pension Scheme, will now be taken on by...

News: Predicting future problems for the DC generation.
April 6, 2009... Byline: Clive Gilchrist - Managing director, Bestrustees At last month's National Association of Pension Funds (NAPF) investment conference, the government and the Finanical Services Authority, in two keynote speeches from Paul Myners and...

Awards news: Provider Awards 2009 - Please take your seats for PIPA 2009.
April 6, 2009... Wednesday 6th May - Sheraton Park Lane Hotel Piccadilly, London, W1J 7BX The event What makes a PIPA awards winner? All of the entrants on the right will have had to give evidence of their successes in 2008, their innovation, their...

In depth: Personal view - Dynamic currency strategies are needed to survive volatile markets.
April 6, 2009... Byline: Monica Fan Pension plans have flocked to currency this year in a bid to ameliorate losses they have suffered in other asset classes, especially in international equities and international bonds. The low correlation of currency...

In depth: Jargon buster.
April 6, 2009... Buyout and buy-in The bulk purchase of annuity, or deferred annuity policies by trustees to secure members' benefits with an insurance company. Buyout refers to annuities bought in the members' names, which fully remove liability. Buy-in...

In depth: Technical view - Protect and serve: trustee liabilities.
April 6, 2009... Byline: John Richardson The responsibilities and potential culpability of pension scheme trustees have increased significantly in recent years. Since the introduction of 'code of practice no 7' in the trustee knowledge and understanding...

In depth: Corporate governance - Will blood be spilt at high profile AGMs?
April 6, 2009... Byline: Tom Powdrill Two governance stories have remained regular fixtures in the media in recent weeks - Stuart Rose's position as executive chair at Marks & Spencer and the ongoing fallout from the Fred Goodwin pension deal. At...

In depth: Without prejudice - Regulation, regulation, regulation.
April 6, 2009... Byline: Francois Barker - Partner and national head of pensions, Hammonds A couple of numbers have caught my eye in the past few weeks - 350 and 60, since you ask. 350 is an estimate of the total DB pensions deficit (in GBPbillions); 60 is...

In depth: Notice board - NAPF events and publications.(Conference news)
April 6, 2009... NAPF Local Authority Conference 2009 People, politics and pensions May 18-20, 2009 The Belfry, Warwickshire If you are in the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) world then this event is designed for you. Minister for...

Pensions workout: Beginners - DC fund platforms - Beginners' level.
April 6, 2009... Almost a decade ago, retail fund distribution was blown apart by the introduction of the first fund supermarket. This revolutionary idea, offering investors the ability to buy and hold the funds of many providers in one account, was quickly...

Supplement: Special Focus - Introduction.
April 6, 2009... Byline: Charlie Kirby - Deputy editor Currency can be a difficult asset class to gauge. When this recession was a mere credit crunch, Mercer warned that the traditional management styles, which saw currency managers borrow on a low interest...

Supplement: Special Focus - Perfect time to make the exchange.
April 6, 2009... Buoyed by recent strong returns from currency managers and general currency market volatility, the asset class has once again moved toward the top of the agenda for professional investors. While this may be dismissed as simply a recurring fad,...

Supplement: Special Focus - Company focus - A word from the sponsor...
April 6, 2009... Background With 80,456 employees in 72 countries, Deutsche Bank offers unparalleled financial services throughout the world. The bank competes to be the leading global provider of financial solutions for demanding clients, creating...

On the move: Psolve adds strings to bow with quartet.
April 6, 2009... Byline: Nick Reeve Psolve Asset Solutions has appointed Sathish Ramdayal (pic) as an investment adviser to help develop asset allocation solutions for the firm's existing client base. The consultancy has also hired three new investment...

On the move: Going places.
April 6, 2009... Tillman returns to Hewitt as consultant Hewitt Associates has reappointed Gavin Tillman as a member of its UK investment consulting team. Tillman joins from HSBC Global Asset Management, where he worked on the liability-driven...

On the move: Recent moves.
April 6, 2009... 01 - Mike Sullivan OLD - Sullivan has been vice-president of the Pensions Management Institute since 2008 NEW - He will take over from Steve Delo as president in July this year Tel: 020 7247 1452 02 - Mark Adamson OLD -...

News: Schemes to provide loans for companies.
April 13, 2009... Byline: David Rowley The UK's biggest pension funds have agreed to kick-start lending to companies unable to gain sufficient bank loans in the credit crunch. The West Midlands Pension Fund has made a commitment to the M&G UK Companies...

News: Buy-in deal for Thomson fund.
April 13, 2009... Byline: Tom Willetts Citigroup, the sponsor of the Thomson Regional Newspapers Pension Fund, has completed a GBP60m pensioner buy-in deal with Prudential. This increases the number of pensioners insured after a similar deal two years...

This week: Everything changes but you.
April 13, 2009... Byline: David Rowley - Editor Pensions and the media have a rocky relationship. The media thrives on amazing revelations and new trends, while a quiet life and conservatism are the watchwords in pensions. So occasionally, when we in the...

News: Trustee cleared after fund transfer error.
April 13, 2009... Byline: Tom Willetts A trustee for a small pension scheme has escaped a substantial tax bill after wrongly moving funds into his personal bank account. The case, which was settled in the High Court, involved Harry Thorpe, who was a...

News: Aon refutes link between merger and pension cut.
April 13, 2009... Byline: Charlie Kirby Insurance broker Aon has denied that its recent merger with Benfield has directly influenced the decision to cut its pension benefits. Insurance insiders claim that Aon overstretched its finances in merging with...

News in brief.
April 13, 2009... Almost a third of pension trustees are flouting regulations that stipulate they must keep a register of the risks posing a threat to their schemes. A similar proportion are failing to hold an annual risk review, while one in 10 confesses...

News: Sponsors unaware of trustee pressures.
April 13, 2009... Byline: David Rowley Two-thirds of trustees and pension fund managers feel their sponsoring employers do not understand the enormity of their workloads. PW's Trusty 30 survey found 67% blamed the misunderstanding on a combination of...

News: Early backers champion firm's OMO campaign.
April 13, 2009... Byline: Owen Walker An annuity provider's bid to make major distributors join an industry-wide campaign to promote the open market option (OMO) has won early support. Living Time, spearheaded by ex-Prudential head of annuities Kim...

News: Gilt yield crash creates rush for scheme pensions.
April 13, 2009... Byline: Charlie Kirby Wealthy pensioners are flocking towards scheme pensions after the gilt yields crash led to lower payouts under alternatively secured pensions (ASPs). Research by Rowanmoor Pensions has shown that 69% of its...

News: FTSE 350 deficits in poor state of health.
April 13, 2009... Byline: David Rowley A typical FTSE 350 company has a pension deficit equal to 246 days of its annual earnings, according to analysis by Hymans Robertson. The finding came from one of two reports issued this month into the unhealthy...

News: Club Vita membership total hits 50.
April 13, 2009... Byline: David Rowley Club Vita, the UK's first 'longevity comparison club', has enrolled 50 pension schemes since its launch in January. The service gives subscribers access to a pool of data, providing them with longevity analysis...

News in brief.
April 13, 2009... Axa's decision to no longer pay initial commissions to advisers for selling its GPP products has been welcomed by Towry Law. Axa is now aligned with Friends Provident and Prudential, which also do not pay initial commission on GPPs. ...

News: Court awards pensions for injured firefighters.
April 13, 2009... Byline: Charlie Kirby A landmark ruling from the Court of Appeal has guaranteed that disabled firefighters will be able to collect an ill-health pension. The action ensued after three London firefighters took legal action against the...

News: More flexible funding required.(Conference notes)
April 13, 2009... Byline: Charlie Kirby Nine out of 10 pensions professionals believe trustees should offer increased flexibility to their employers' pension funding plans. Baker Tilly's annual pension conference saw 220 industry professionals and...

News: Investment insight - An antidote to volatile markets.
April 13, 2009... Byline: Steve Cleal - Head of asset allocation fund management, Aviva Investors Pension managers naturally model their fund's liabilities decades into the future. But in planning ahead, the sensible manager should not overlook short- term...

In depth: Profile.
April 13, 2009... Byline: Tom Willetts Ministers have been toiling away to mend the occupational pensions system since the halcyon days of buoyant growth following Labour's election victory in 1997. The current duo of James Purnell and Rosie Winterton...

In depth: Strong processes will lead to good governance.
April 13, 2009... Byline: Sarah Smart - Trustee and pensions consultant I read an article recently suggesting that the success of trustees at managing their pension schemes should be subjected to the same level of scrutiny as the success of management at...

Awards news: Provider Awards 2009 - Please take your seats for PIPA 2009.
April 13, 2009... Wednesday 6th May - Sheraton Park Lane Hotel Piccadilly, London, W1J 7BX The event What makes a PIPA awards winner? All of the entrants on the right will have had to give evidence of their successes in 2008, their innovation, their...

In depth: Personal view - The difference between implemented consulting and fiduciary management.
April 13, 2009... Byline: Chetan Ghosh Implemented consulting and fiduciary management are two services both claiming to do the same thing yet with different names. I would love to say that the two names arise from a slick marketing trick to promote...

In depth: Jargon buster.
April 13, 2009... Contingent assets Assets that the trustees of a pension scheme would have first call on in the occurrence of one or more specified future 'contingent events', for example employer insolvency. The contingent asset would only become a true...

In depth: Technical view - Sharing in the revenues of hedge funds.
April 13, 2009... Byline: Patric de Gentile-Williams As in many industries, start-up companies in the asset management business are often launched with the backing of an anchor client, or an 'angel' or 'seed' investor. Throughout most of the history of the...

In depth: Corporate governance - The move towards 'vertical regulation'.
April 13, 2009... Byline: Tom Powdrill Capitalism has been having a hard time of late. The rather mythical Anglo-Saxon version in particular now has no shortage of critics, and even some former advocates have turned against it. But in the midst of this...

In depth: My life outside pensions.
April 13, 2009... Byline: Gordon Sharp - Director, KPMG The chairman of the Actuarial Profession's Continuous Mortality Investigation gained his pilot's license 19 years ago, and is a member of the West London Aero Club. His interest in aviation has...

In depth: Notice board - NAPF events.
April 13, 2009... Hot Topic Seminar: Managing DB risk June 5, 2009 NAPF Westminster The next NAPF hot topic seminar is all about managing DB risk and the programme includes: Risk appetite: what's it all about? A consideration of how the...

Pensions workout: Intermediate - DC fund platforms - Intermediate level.
April 13, 2009... Institutional fund platforms are enjoying a growing popularity among defined contribution (DC) schemes. Inspired by the idea of retail fund supermarkets, the best platforms offer a practical way to access investment funds from many managers....

On the move: Cardano expands investment group.
April 13, 2009... Byline: Britni Salazar Cardano UK has appointed Frederic Hevras (pic) and Michelle Bellwood to its investment management team. Prior to joining Cardano UK, Hevras served as a senior analyst at Atlas Capital for seven years. He worked...

On the move: Going places.
April 13, 2009... Investment Solutions takes on Jackson Investment Solutions has named Emma Jackson as DC customer relationship manager. Jackson will focus on supporting the business demands of the existing DC client base. Jackson joins from Mercer...

On the move: Recent moves.
April 13, 2009... 01 - Sathish Ramdayal OLD - Ramdayal was responsible for pensions business at consultancy Barrie & Hibbert NEW - He joins Psolve Asset Solutions as an investment adviser Tel: 020 7533 6999 02 - Gavin Tillman OLD - Tillman...

News: Council funds saddled with more liabilities.
April 20, 2009... Byline: Tom Willetts Local authority schemes have been burdened with the liabilities of public sector employers that leave the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS). The new obligation follows a decision by the Court of Appeal after a...

News: PPF chief says benefits could be reduced.
April 20, 2009... Byline: Owen Walker The new chief executive of the Pensions Protection Fund (PPF) has refused to rule out reducing benefit payments as an action of last resort. In an interview with PW's sister title Pensions Management, Alan...

This week: Glad I'm not paying his annuity.
April 20, 2009... Byline: Charlie Kirby - Deputy editor Some of you may remember hearing about Henry Allingham a few weeks ago. The Royal Navy veteran is officially the Oldest Man in Britain, and is set to reach the age of 113 on June 6. With Living...

News: Treasury intransigence sparks legal challenge.
April 20, 2009... Byline: Charlie Kirby The Treasury will face a High Court challenge from the Equitable Members Action Group (Emag) after it failed to act on parliamentary ombudsman recommendations. Representing Emag, law firm Bindmans has retained...

News: Schemes obliged to secure maximum benefits via buyout.
April 20, 2009... Byline: Tom Willetts Trustees with struggling sponsors have a responsibility to secure higher benefits with an insurance company rather than with the government's safety net, according to Paternoster. The Pension Protection Fund (PPF)...

News: Regulator tacitly backs longer recovery plans.
April 20, 2009... Byline: David Rowley The Pensions Regulator is accepting longer recovery plans, but has stopped short of publicly endorsing a new timeframe for repayment. While press reports hinting at a more flexible approach led to rises in share...

News in brief.
April 20, 2009... A defunct quango is in talks to offload its pension scheme to Pension Corporation in the first deal involving a scheme backed by the government. Export promoter Food from Britain was closed down by the Department for Environment, Food and...

News: Higher rate tax relief threatened by Budget.
April 20, 2009... Byline: Nick Reeve Chancellor Alistair Darling may use the 2009 Budget report to reduce the higher rate of tax relief on pension contributions, according to industry experts. The possible revenue-raising measure is currently a topic...

News: Origo gets results for fund transfer times.
April 20, 2009... Byline: Charlie Kirby The average fund transfer times for annuities has fallen from 35 days to just 12 following the Origo Options initiative. Participating providers have reported a significant reduction in the average time taken to...

News in brief.
April 20, 2009... The Personal Accounts Delivery Authority (PADA) has incurred costs of almost GBP37m since it was established in July 2007. PADA spent an estimated GBP10.4m from the Department for Work and Pensions' budget between August 1, 2007 and...

News: Salary sacrifice offers rapid recovery of costs.
April 20, 2009... Byline: Britni Salazar Employers can reap cost savings from salary sacrifice in under 12 months if employee contributions exceed 500,000 a year, according to Watson Wyatt. Kim Honess, head of flexible benefits consulting at Watson...

News: Letter.
April 20, 2009... I have only just read Nigel Peaple's article of March 23 about the future of the Pension Protection Fund (PPF) levy, and note that he is suggesting that the current amount raised for the levy (GBP675m) should be capped at that amount and...

News: Investment insight - Removing the shackles from fixed income.
April 20, 2009... Byline: Shahid Ikram - Head of sovereign and total return, Aviva Investors The illusion that strategies built around equities can answer all the needs of pension investors has been firmly shattered. Pension funds now realise...

News: Trustees held liable for breach of duty.
April 20, 2009... Byline: Charlie Kirby The pensions ombudsman has determined that new trustees are not exempt from personal liability, even if the scheme rules suggest otherwise. In a recent hearing, the ombudsman demanded that the trustees of the ES...

News: Weak sponsor demands rethink at Johnston.
April 20, 2009... Byline: Tom Willetts The GBP500m Johnston Press Pension Plan is reviewing its investment strategy amid concerns over its sponsor's health and dwindling annual contributions. The move follows Johnston Press, publisher of The Scotsman...

Awards news: Provider Awards 2009 - Please take your seats for PIPA 2009.
April 20, 2009... Wednesday 6th May - Sheraton Park Lane Hotel Piccadilly, London, W1J 7BX The event What makes a PIPA awards winner? All of the entrants on the right will have had to give evidence of their successes in 2008, their innovation, their...

In depth: Spot the risks.
April 20, 2009... Sometimes the best advice is the simplest: know your risks. This is certainly true in commercial real estate investment where, earlier in the decade, capital values in property markets were increasing by more than 10% annually based mainly on...

In depth: Universal protected pension will abolish pensioner poverty.
April 20, 2009... Byline: Frank Field - Labour MP for Birkenhead After the years of plenty come the lean years. Big cuts in public expenditure are now in store. And, although it is counterintuitive, cutting public expenditure opens up the possibility of...

In depth: Personal view - A constructive alignment of interests is possible for trustees and employers.
April 20, 2009... Byline: Marcus Hurd An emphasis on the differences between pension scheme trustees and employers has resulted in many employers' attitudes to pensions shifting from paternalism to the role of faceless debtor. Rather than driving a wedge...

In depth: Jargon buster.
April 20, 2009... Drawdown Where an individual's pension savings remain invested on retirement and a portion is withdrawn as income each year, delaying the purchase of an annuity. Drawdown is permitted between 50-75 years old and income can be between...

In depth: Technical view - STP are we nearly there yet?
April 20, 2009... Byline: Paul Sturgess A year or two ago, straight-through processing (STP) for defined contribution (DC) pension schemes was a hot topic every time you opened a magazine, there it was today, it hardly merits a mention. So why have...

In depth: Corporate governance - Blogs: sorting the wheat from the chaff.
April 20, 2009... Byline: Tom Powdrill As you may have noticed recently, blogs and bloggers are making the news. The high-profile resignation of Number 10 spin doctor Damian McBride was, of course, brought about after the infamous Guido Fawkes blog gave to...

In depth: Without prejudice.
April 20, 2009... Byline: Adam Bushby - Partner, Lawrence Graham It's Easter Sunday, and once all the eggs have been eaten, churches up and down the land will be preparing for their annual parochial church meetings. At these meetings church wardens will be...

In depth: Notice board - NAPF dates for 2009.
April 20, 2009... NAPF Local Authority Conference 2009 People, politics and pensions May 18-20, 2009 The Belfry, Warwickshire In this period of significant change, the NAPF local authority conference will provide a timely opportunity to hear...

Pensions workout: Advanced - DC fund platforms - Advanced level.
April 20, 2009... Defined contribution (DC) fund platforms are enjoying growing popularity among schemes and consultants who see the benefits of offering the funds of many managers through one provider. To many in the industry, they are the future model of the...