Pensions Week articles from December 2007

Pensions Week archives from December 2007

News: Healthy funds pay the price of levy rise.
December 3, 2007... Byline: Gill Wadsworth The Pension Protection Fund (PPF) has come under fire for "acting unfairly" by hiking levy payments for well funded schemes. The lifeboat's latest announ-cement raises the threshold for which schemes have to...

News: Bonds lead to big losses.
December 3, 2007... Byline: Gill Wadsworth Pension funds have locked in losses of half a billion pounds from investing in poor performing corporate bonds, research revealed. Hewitt Associates claimed the 'credit crunch' has sent returns on company debt...

This week: A consistently modest bonus.
December 3, 2007... Byline: Gill Wadsworth - Editor, Pensions Week Christmas is coming and star fund managers' and investment bankers' accounts should be getting fat, but given the rocky (pardon the pun) period we've endured over the last few months, it's...

News: Grayling picks holes in personal accounts.
December 3, 2007... Byline: David Ricketts Personal accounts risks becoming a sinking ship unless more is done to tackle underlying problems, the shadow pensions secretary has suggested. Speaking at the FT's Leadership of Pensions Summit, Chris Grayling...

News: Pensions crisis has abated over past year.
December 3, 2007... Byline: David Ricketts The 'pensions crisis' that has threatened occupational sche-mes since the start of the century has alleviated over the last 12 months, according to a panel of politicians and union representatives. Kay Carberry,...

News: Schemes must engage for better governance.
December 3, 2007... Byline: Owen Walker Pension scheme buyouts and the move from defined benefit to defined contribution are major threats to shareholder engagement, a leading local authority pension figure claimed. Mike Taylor, chief executive of the...

News: Adviser slams bad value hedge funds.
December 3, 2007... Byline: Owen Walker A consumer finance adviser has dubbed liability-driven investment (LDI) and hedge fund management "the emperor's new clothes", and urged investors to work together to get providers to drop their fees. Mick McAteer,...

News in Brief.
December 3, 2007... Local authorities can monitor their level of responsible investment following the launch of a self-assessment tool. The UK Social Investment Forum's (UKSIF) tool means trustees can measure their commitment to considering social and ethical...

News: SEI offers advice as part of total solution.
December 3, 2007... Byline: Hannah Williams Pension funds are ditching fragmented consultancy and investment management in favour of more integrated solutions, according to providers. SEI, which is set to launch an advice-led asset management product,...

News: BT scheme under investigation for government aid.
December 3, 2007... Byline: Hannah Williams The European Commission has launched an investigation to determine whether state aid received by the BT pension fund represented an illegal financial and competitive advantage. Following the privatisation of...

News: No easy solution to burden on employers.
December 3, 2007... Byline: David Ricketts The government's recent attempts to ease the regulatory burden on pension schemes still lack the "magic bullet" when it comes to removing complexities for sponsoring employers, the minister for pensions reform...

News in Brief.
December 3, 2007... Mercer has been appointed by Spire Healthcare to provide ongoing consulting services on the governance, administration and communication of the company's pension plan. The scheme includes over 3,000 former members of BUPA's pension plans....

News: Troubled funds turn to buyout to avoid PPF.
December 3, 2007... Byline: Hannah Williams A growing number of beleaguered pension funds are looking at buyout vehicles in an attempt to avoid entering the Pension Protection Fund (PPF), according to providers. The Occupational Pensions Trust (OPT), a...

News: Prudential opts to outsource admin to Capita.
December 3, 2007... Byline: James Thomas Prudential has outsourced a significant proportion of its in-force and new business policy administration to Capita, in a deal which sees the transfer of 3,000 Prudential staff to the administrator. Around 1,750...

News: NAPF unveils updated governance guidelines.
December 3, 2007... Byline: James Thomas The National Association of Pension Funds (NAPF) has updated its corporate governance policy and voting guidelines. The latest best practice includes high level guidance on environmental, social and governance...

News: Managers look to invest in internal technology.
December 3, 2007... Byline: James Thomas Asset managers are overhauling internal systems in a bid to reinvent and differentiate their businesses in the face of demands for high returns, a report by Datamonitor claimed. The research found that a drive to...

News: LODH joins up with Blood and Gore's Generation.
December 3, 2007... Byline: Hannah Williams Swiss bank, Lombard Odier Darier Hentsch (LODH) has signed up to a sustainable investment partnership with former US vice-president Al Gore's Generation Investment Management. The deal will see the bank act as...

News: Half of scheme members believe pension is safe.
December 3, 2007... Byline: James Thomas Over half of UK pension scheme members (53%) believe their pensions are guaranteed, according Alexander Forbes Financial Services' (AFFS) pensions confidence survey. In spite of scare stories about pension failures...

Current affairs: Q&A.
December 3, 2007... Byline: Hannah Williams Q: How confident are you that the government's proposals on deregulation and personal accounts will improve UK saving patterns? A: The government's proposals following the deregulatory review will, in my view,...

Current affairs: Batten down the hatches - for now.
December 3, 2007... Byline: Lindsay Tomlinson As I write, I can hear the sound of credit crunching all the way around the world; truly a slow motion train wreck. The first thing that an investor does when faced with an unfamiliar situation is ask, has it...

The insider: Personal view - The warning bell has tolled: it is time to act to avoid future disasters.
December 3, 2007... Byline: David Johnson The US subprime meltdown and ensuing financial market chaos served as a timely wake-up call for pension fund trustee boards about the need to adopt more rigorous contingency planning to protect funding plans....

The Insider: Technical view - Holding the key to alpha success.
December 3, 2007... Byline: Patrick Armstrong Derivatives have many uses in a portfolio context, which include hedging risk, generating income, changing the pay-off patterns of traditional investments, and opportunistic exposure to an asset class. Use of...

Industry watch: Governance - Open up the coffers to more equal pay.
December 3, 2007... Byline: Tom Powdrill There has been something of an upsurge in public and political disquiet about levels of executive remuneration recently. A number of factors seem to drive this concern. Obviously, the cash figures discussed just keep...

Industry watch: Notice board - NAPF events and guidelines.(Conference news)
December 3, 2007... Investing today, securing tomorrow NAPF investment conference, 2008 March 5-7, Edinburgh International Conference Centre (EICC) This conference is specifically designed to address the key issues and challenges facing pension funds...

Industry watch: View from the bridge.
December 3, 2007... Pensions summit As befits a regulator columnist for PW, I was at the FT Global Events Leadership of Pensions Summit '07 last week. It was a day full of interesting sessions and speakers. But the siren call of the blackberry and client...

Pensions workout: Advanced - Private equity - Advanced level.
December 3, 2007... Growing numbers of investment managers - including private equity managers - are raising specialist funds to invest in 'distressed' companies. Distressed investing can take many forms, ranging from trading the financial instruments of...

Roundtable: What do we mean by enhanced indexation?(Discussion)
December 3, 2007... Byline: Gill Wadsworth David Schofield: There is quite a lot of difference of opinion about what it means. Typically most people would view it as a low relative risk strategy for targeting modest returns above a benchmark. Depending on...

On the move: Richards boosts ESG work at Watson Wyatt.
December 3, 2007... Byline: James Thomas Watson Wyatt has added to its ethical investment advisory credentials with the appointment of Paul Richards to its global manager research team. Joining as a London-based senior investment consultant, Richards...

On the move: Going Places.
December 3, 2007... Devenney to join Punter Southall Scotland Punter Southall has named Gerry Devenney as principal to join the firm's Edinburgh office. Devenney, who boasts 20 years' experience in pensions, joins Punter Southall from HSBC Actuaries and...

On the move: Top 4 moves.
December 3, 2007... 01- Rodney Fernandes OLD - Head of European index fund sales at Societe Generale Asset Management NEW - Appointed as chief investment officer at London and Capital Tel: 020 7396 3200 02- Colin Hamilton OLD - Leaves role...

News: ABI calls for saver trust in government.
December 10, 2007... Byline: David Ricketts The insurance industry has demanded government tackles an innate misunderstanding and lack of trust surrounding retirement savings if personal accounts are to be a success. Maggie Craig, director of life and...

News: FairPensions founder quits.
December 10, 2007... Byline: HAnnah Williams The founder and executive director of responsible investment campaign group, FairPensions, has quit to return to his native Holland. Alex van der Velden established the lobby group in 2004 to promote greater...

This week: Keep mindful of the target market.
December 10, 2007... Byline: Gill Wadsworth - Editor, Pensions Week This week's PW is a bit personal accounts heavy, but I make no apology for that, given the huge impact this system is going to have on the face of retirement saving in the UK. Over recent...

News: Schemes should offer fewer default options.
December 10, 2007... Byline: David Ricketts Default options available to those enrolled in pension schemes should be limited to a list of elite funds rather than overwhelming members with complex solutions, a leading US academic has suggested. Speaking at...

News: Alternative assets are becoming more attractive.
December 10, 2007... Byline: Hannah Williams UK pension funds are upping their investments to alternative assets and increasingly breaking the 20% allocation barrier, the latest PW survey has found. Findings from the Trusty 30 showed 63% of funds were...

News: Swedish system has lessons for UK's PAs.
December 10, 2007... Byline: Chris Newlands The UK government has sought advice from the Swedish system of personal accounts despite branding it a failure. Daniel Barr, head of the Swedish government's personal accounts offering, which minister for...

News: Myners defends right to free speech.
December 10, 2007... Byline: Gill Wadsworth Paul Myners, chairman of the Personal Accounts Delivery Authority (PADA), was forced to justify an appearance made on the BBC's Question Time programme following accusations of political bias. Chris Grayling,...

News in brief.
December 10, 2007... Plans to close the defined benefit pension scheme at International Power could leave thousands without power if strike action goes ahead. Unite is currently preparing to ballot members at plants in Rugeley, Dinorwig and Ffestiniog for...

News: Halving DB cap will slash leaver benefits.
December 10, 2007... Byline: Hannah Williams The government has been blasted for over-ruling recommendations from the deregulatory review by cutting the cap on deferred benefit revaluations by 50%. The pension entitlements of members who have left defined...

News: PwC advocates change freeze ahead of PA laws.
December 10, 2007... Byline: Gill Wadsworth All potential scheme changes should be put on hold until the details of personal accounts set out in the Pensions Bill 2007 are formalised in legislation, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) claimed. The consultant said...

News: LETTER.
December 10, 2007... In 'Current Affairs' (PW 26.11.07) I was interested in the responses by Joanne Segars, chief executive of the NAPF. While Frank Field, Ros Altmann and Chris Grayling expressed concern about the danger of combining personal accounts and...

News: Council fund faces call to disinvest in Burma.
December 10, 2007... Byline: Hannah Williams The GBP630m Tower Hamlets pension scheme has received unprecedented demands from members to justify investments in Burma, according to scheme guardians. Council funds have been facing increased pressure from...

News: Number of final salary members in fast decline.
December 10, 2007... Byline: Gill Wadsworth Less than one million people in the UK are members of open final salary schemes, the Association of Consulting Actuaries (ACA) claimed. Based on a survey of its members, the ACA revealed a sharp decline in the...

News in brief.
December 10, 2007... The Avon pension fund has seen its position as lead plaintiff in the class action case against GlaxoSmithKline affirmed by the US courts. Following an earlier motion for reconsideration, submitted by German institutional investors, a legal...

News: UK's biggest funds slow on ESG uptake.
December 10, 2007... Byline: Hannah Williams Pension funds of FTSE 100 companies including Barclays and BAE Systems, are neglecting responsible investment issues such as climate change and human rights, research has found. The study by FairPensions found...

News: More choice forces members to go for default fund option.
December 10, 2007... Byline: Gill Wadsworth Trust-based defined contribution (DC) plans are less likely to baffle savers with too much choice than their contract-based counterparts, Watson Wyatt claimed. In a survey of DC plans in the FTSE 100, the global...

News: Vote to strike starts at Newsquest papers.
December 10, 2007... Byline: Hannah Williams Strike ballots are underway at two regional newspapers in protest over plans to increase pension contributions. National Union of Journa-lists (NUJ) members at the York and County Press and the Northern Echo...

News: UK pensions streets ahead of States on LDI.
December 10, 2007... Byline: Gill Wadsworth UK pension plans are leaving their US counterparts in the shade when it comes to liability-driven investment (LDI), research revealed. According to Greenwich Associates, Britain's pension plans are world pioneers...

News: Hermes specialist management gets GBP50m boost.
December 10, 2007... Byline: Gill Wadsworth Hermes has announced a GBP50m cash injection to its investment management business in a bid to boost its specialist capabilities. The move will see invest-ment in risk management systems and new products, and...

News: Couples' incomes halve on retirement.
December 10, 2007... Byline: Gill Wadsworth Retired couples are struggling on less than half the income they need from a private pension, a financial services provider claimed. Research from MetLife found pensioners in a couple were claiming an average...

Current Affairs: Under debate.
December 10, 2007... Byline: Hannah Williams Last week saw the long-awaited arrival of the Pensions Bill 2007, which after months of consultation and deliberation is now only slightly nearer its final conclusions - such is the nature of the UK regulatory...

Current affairs: Making more of unclaimed assets.
December 10, 2007... Byline: Frank Field The government's pensions bill has just been published and the House of Commons is likely to begin debating the measure on its first day back after the Christmas vacation. Two issues of importance will begin to be...

The insider: Personal view - Enhanced value transfers is a risk strategy worth taking a look at.
December 10, 2007... Byline: Paul Marks The past year has undoubtedly been a rollercoaster ride for defined benefit (DB) pension schemes. Market falls in February saw approximately GBP20bn added to the burden of deficits in a matter of days. Yet the subsequent...

The insider: Technical view - Myners principles: moving up a gear.
December 10, 2007... Byline: Julian Le Fanu This year, the National Association of Pension Funds (NAPF) reviewed the Myners principles for pension fund trustees on behalf of HM Treasury. The report, Institutional investment in the UK: six years on, examined...

Industry watch: Governance - Public sector cannot rest on its laurels.
December 10, 2007... Byline: Tom Powdrill In most countries with well developed, funded pension systems there seems to be something of a split between types of funds when it comes to their appetite for shareholder engagement. Very simply, those schemes with a...

Industry watch: Notice board - NAPF trustee training options.
December 10, 2007... Training for trustees 2008 Since April 6, 2006 pension scheme trustees must take steps to ensure they have appropriate levels of knowledge and understanding of trusteeship and are conversant with their scheme's documents. NAPF supports the...

Industry watch: View from the bridge.
December 10, 2007... Byline: Norman Russell The science delusion The think-tank for which my wife works is putting on a lecture later in the week by Lord Winston, the scientist and broadcaster, under the arresting heading 'The science delusion'. I thought...

Trusty30: Alternative investing.
December 10, 2007... Byline: Hannah Williams Gone are the days when a 10% scheme allocation to real estate could dominate a pensions journalist's news list. With property practically considered a mainstream investment option, and regular reports of local...

Supplement: Special Focus - Introduction.
December 10, 2007... Byline: Gill Wadsworth - Editor, Pensions Week Wanting more from fixed income has become standard among UK pension funds and simply using bonds to match cash flows is no longer acceptable to many trustees. Fund managers are expected...

Supplement: Special Focus - Active assets.
December 10, 2007... Byline: James Thomas In the face of scheme underfunding and increased liabilities, the role of fixed income has been progressively reassessed. As the trend has developed away from balanced and towards specialist mandates, fixed income is...

Supplement: Special Focus - Inspiring times lie ahead.
December 10, 2007... Byline: Mark Pearce The credit crunch currently afflicting capital markets is widely regarded as the result of a crisis of confidence that started in the US housing market, and has led to widespread dislocation in the non-government bond...

Supplement: Special Focus - Company Focus - A word from the sponsor...(Company overview)
December 10, 2007... Background Threadneedle was founded in 1994 and manages more than GBP70bn* of assets. Offering successful investment solutions is its only business, and many types of clients worldwide now benefit from its informed decision making,...

On the move: Sackers appoints trio of graduates.
December 10, 2007... Byline: David Ricketts Specialist pension law firm Sacker and Partners has stepped up its recruitment drive, appointing a trio of recently qualified solicitors. Nicola Bruce joins the firm having recently gained a training contract...

On the move: Going places.
December 10, 2007... Saunders returns to Punter Southall Actuarial firm Punter Southall is to welcome back James Saunders to its transaction services team as principal. Saunders, who joins from PricewaterhouseCoopers, has over 18 years' actuarial...

On the move: Top 4 moves.
December 10, 2007... 01 - Paul Richards OLD - Managing director at Goldman Sachs AM NEW - Senior investment consultant at Watson Wyatt Tel: 01737 241144 02 - Gerry Devenney OLD - Devenney leaves his post as head of HSBC Actuaries &...

News: DWP defends delays to FAS asset review.
December 17, 2007... Byline: Gill Wadsworth The government has denied accusations it is burying a review of Financial Assistance Scheme (FAS) funding in spite of repeated delays to its publication. The Young review of FAS scheme assets has still not been...

News: Puddle makes a splash at HSBC.
December 17, 2007... Byline: Gill Wadsworth David Puddle has been appoin-ted as head of institutional sales for HSBC Investments. Following Puddle's redundancy after 15 years' service at Putnam Investments, he will join an ever-growing list of new recruits...

This week: Here's to fizz not fizzle for 2008.
December 17, 2007... Byline: Gill Wadsworth - Editor, Pensions Week I had hoped my last leader of the year would be rejoicing a resolution to the Financial Assistance Scheme saga that has dragged on for an eternity, but then I remembered where I was and got a...

News: Volatility blamed for Shropshire losses.
December 17, 2007... Byline: Gill Wadsworth Underperformance by specialist managers at a local authority pension scheme has wiped millions from the fund's assets. The GBP554m Shropshire County Council scheme has reported significant losses following...

News: Guess the UK's surplus and win a day's coasteering.
December 17, 2007... Hewitt is calling all financial Mystic Megs to hedge their bets and enter a competition to predict the state of the UK's pension funding at the end of 2007. The global consultant has developed a web tool that provides daily statistics on...

News: Grayling urges DWP to address means-testing.
December 17, 2007... Byline: David Ricketts The shadow pensions minister has called on government to tackle the issue of means-testing and iron out any creases in personal accounts before the pensions bill completes its passage through parliament. Chris...

News: Paternoster clinches P&O buyout deal.
December 17, 2007... Byline: Hannah Williams The GBP1.3bn P&O pension fund has offloaded benefit responsibility for existing pensioners to buyout firm Paternoster in an GBP800m deal. The shipping group will continue to manage benefit arrangements for more...

News in Brief.
December 17, 2007... Aberdeen Asset Management is investigating setting up an alternative asset arm set for launch in 2008. The firm is in talks with outgoing head of fixed income Steve Ilott about heading up the project, when his contract ends in March. ...

News: Siemens scuppered in trust deed case.
December 17, 2007... Byline: Hannah Williams Electrical firm Siemens has been forced to pay up to nearly GBP2m in extra benefits after the High Court ruled it could not make retrospective amendments to mistakes in its trust deed. A drafting error in the...

News: Pearl pledges to make Resolution top ALM provider.
December 17, 2007... Byline: Gill Wadsworth The Pearl Group has set out its stall as a major force in institutional investment, following its takeover of Resolution's GBP85bn asset management business. In a statement, Pearl honed in on Resolution Asset...

News: Age laws consultation a 'disappointment'.
December 17, 2007... Byline: Hannah Williams The need for further consultation on age discrimination rules and their impact on UK pensions has been branded a disappointment by consultants. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) admitted it had received...

News: Calls for class action recovery framework.
December 17, 2007... Byline: David Ricketts Pension schemes could be missing out on substantial damages awarded in US courts unless they establish a framework to recoup losses through class actions, a pensions lawyer claimed. Adam Bushby, pensions partner...

News: iShares launches trio of Shariah ETFs.
December 17, 2007... Byline: David Ricketts The exchange traded fund (ETF) arm of Barclays Global Investors, iShares, has introduced three Shariah-compliant funds. The funds, which have been endorsed by a fatwa and designed in consultation with Barclays'...

News in Brief.
December 17, 2007... The number of UK pension funds investing in hedge funds has rocketed by more than 30%, figures from Baring Asset Management revealed. The fund manager reported as many as 48% of UK schemes investing in either single strategy or...

News: Sipps get go-ahead for protected rights.
December 17, 2007... Byline: Hannah Williams Government proposals to in-crease the investment options for protected rights have been warmly welcomed by the industry. Currently, the national insurance rebates given when a member contracts out of the state...

News: Walker defends against claims of diluting final report.
December 17, 2007... The architect of a recent review that attempted to boost confidence and transparency within the private equity industry has hit back at criticism he watered down guidelines delivered in his final report. Speaking at a parliamentary select...

News: Executive retirement benefit gap closing.
December 17, 2007... Byline: Tom Willetts The retirement benefits of senior executives and other staff are converging, according to research from Xafinity Consulting. The firm's first executive retirement benefits survey found differences in pension plan...

News: Bulk annuity will see a slow but steady rise.
December 17, 2007... The bulk annuity market in 2007 has been rather like a cross-channel swimmer fighting against the tide - plenty of effort put in, but limited forward progress. The question is whether the tide will start to change in 2008. Aon's quarterly...

News: Buyout will be shaped by interest rates and equity.
December 17, 2007... The market for defined benefit (DB) risk transfer has changed substantially in the course of a year. Strong and solvent companies are increasingly seeking to secure their DB pension liabilities with regulated insurance companies so they can...