Pensions Week articles from February 2004

Pensions Week archives from February 2004

News: Bulk annuity duopoly set to be challenged.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... The duopoly of Prudential and Legal & General in the GBP300bn bulk annuity market is set to be broken by other providers. Scottish Equitable said it was looking at "workable opportunities" while Norwich Union said it was constantly...

News: Roberts leaves the BBC for strategic role at GUS.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... At least one departure from the BBC announced last week was not due to the findings of the Hutton Inquiry... Rhoslyn Roberts has left the corporation's scheme to become group head of pensions at GUS plc, the retailing and business services...

News: UBS grabs oe450m Devon mandate.(Devon County Council )(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... The GBP1.2bn Devon County Council has appointed UBS Global Asset Management to manage a portfolio of index-tracking equities. The mandate is believed to be worth GBP450m and was previously managed in- house. Devon outsourced the...

News: FSA rejects FRS 17 figure for pension scheme deficit.(Financial Services Authority )
February 2, 2004... The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has rejected the FRS 17 accounting method for calculating its pension scheme deficit and will double the size of a top-up contribution to its defined benefit fund. The FSA has stated that it intends to...

News: Simplification will mean changes to the Open Annuity.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... Open Annuities Ltd, the creator of the Gibraltar-based Open Annuity that returns the remaining funds to an annuitant's estate when they die, is having to redesign its product due to Inland Revenue tax changes proposed in the simplification...

News: Clerical Medical re-enters GPP market.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... Clerical Medical has re-entered the commission-based group personal pension market after an absence of nearly two and a half years. The company, part of the HBOS Group, has always maintained a presence in the fee-based market and said the...

News: Hogg: govt should not foot ASW bill.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... A Conservative MP and leading QC has defended the government's right to not pay compensation to victims whose pensions have been lost after their employers went bust. Douglas Hogg QC, said: "I do have very great difficulties with the...

News: Pensions projections in seconds with Toshiba web service.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... Electronics firm Toshiba has launched a web-based pensions service that cuts the time for its employees to receive their pension projections from days to seconds. The firm said the internet service is the first of its kind in the UK. ...

News: 105 Gartmore staff affected as back office operation outsourced to HSBC.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... Gartmore Investment Management is to outsource its back office operation to HSBC. Gartmore, which has GBP50.3bn under management, said last week it is in exclusive discussions with HSBC about a "lift out" of its London-based back office...

News: How late is late? - Opra relax guidelines.(Occupational Pensions Regulatory Authority )(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... The Occupational Pensions Regulatory Authority (Opra) aims to reduce the number of reports from scheme trustees by relaxing guidelines on when late contribution payments should be reported. The latest Opra update explains that the regulator...

News: UK and US team up to open up Shell.
February 2, 2004... UK fund managers have teamed up with a US law firm to bring a class action lawsuit against integrated oil firm Shell. Milberg Weiss Bershad Hynes & Lerach has filed a suit in a New Jersey court alleging that Shell and its directors...

News: Wake-up call for new Kelloggs members.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... Kellogg's is to close its defined benefit pension scheme to new entrants at the end of the tax year. Tom Stephenson, the scheme's HR adviser, pensions, confirmed to PW that a new defined contribution scheme will take its place. The...

News: Male longevity may cost FTSE 100 firms oe10bn.
February 2, 2004... Improving male life expectancy may have added as much as GBP10bn to FTSE100 companies' pension fund liabilities over the past three years, according to a leading firm of pensions actuaries. Aon Consulting based its research on recently...

News: Myners prompts South Yorkshire to split services.(South Yorkshire Pensions Authority )(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... The GBP2.3bn South Yorkshire Pensions Authority has decided to separate its actuarial services and investment consultancy services because of the recommendations put forward by Paul Myners in his report on institutional investment. Most...

News: Benchmark - The bigger picture.
February 2, 2004... As an investment manager working for pensions funds, I have always been surprised about the amount of time pension trustees spend on investment matters in comparison with other aspects of their role. It's almost as if people regard running a...

News: Property funds closed to new investors by cash logjam.
February 2, 2004... Many of the best-performing property investment funds are closed to new investors because they have too much cash in them as a result of greater allocation to the asset class. The logjam for secondary investors is seen partly as a result of...

News: It's not easy to get a foot up on the property ladder.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... The property sector poses problems for investors - if they can get into it in the first place. One pension fund looking to make a direct investment of GBP400m is struggling to find the right price as a result of changes in laws about how leases...

News: FSA fines DTWM oe750,000 in pensions mis-selling review.(Financial Services Authority)(Deloitte & Touche Wealth Management)(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... Deloitte & Touche Wealth Management (DTWM), the financial adviser arm of the large business services firm, has been fined GBP750,000 by the regulator in relation to the pensions mis-selling review, despite only failing to offer compensation to...

News: HSBC re-appointed custodian at Berkshire.(Berkshire Council pension fund )(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... The GBP800m Berkshire Council pension fund has re-appointed HSBC Bank's Global Investor Services as the scheme custodian. HSBC was placed under review because its fixed-term contract was due to come to an end. PW understands the scheme...

News: Ritchie: I'm a moderately fat cat!
February 2, 2004... Stewart Ritchie, pensions development director at Scottish Equitable, admitted that he is affected personally by the proposed GBP1.4m pensions lifetime allowance. However, he denied he was a 'fat cat' - and described himself as a...

News: Ombudsman Watch.
February 2, 2004... MONSTROUS FAILURE OF JUSTICE Many a disappointed complainant may have felt like uttering the words 'monstrous failure of justice' on first reading of an ombudsman decision. So, indeed, may Gavyn Davies and Greg Dyke on reading Lord...

News: Baillie Gifford shuts UK equity fund to new business.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... Baillie Gifford's UK segregated equity fund is to close to new business until at least 2005. The Edinburgh-based fund manager has a history of temporary fund closures and last opened its UK segregated fund three years ago, since when it...

News: Swaps and bonds combo is the future.
February 2, 2004... Swaps and bonds are set to be the future investment strategy that will allow pension schemes to match their assets and liabilities, according to leading UK fund managers. Axa Investment Managers (Axa IM) has used research of the top 350...

News: No major turbulence in 2004 as experts predict steady rise.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... Alan Brown, State Street Global Advisors' chief investment officer, says that 2004 is to be a steady rather than turbulent year for global economies, echoing the consensus of opinion. He expects equity markets to continue to rise, though...

News: Emerging markets keep up surging performance.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... Emerging markets are set to continue their winning performance for pension funds who invest there, said credit rating agency Standard & Poor's. Emerging markets outperformed the S&P Global 1,200 index by 2.7% in dollar terms over the three...

News: Mid-cap firms' sharp rise to slow down in 2004.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... Mid-cap firms, which have risen sharply since March 2003, will not outperform but more gains are possible, believes Ashton Bradbury, manager of the Old Mutual UK Select Mid Cap Fund. "Overall, given the sheer speed of the market's rise...

News: Rent reduced as Euro property fundamentals slump.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... European property investment fundamentals continued to deteriorate in 2003, resulting in rental declines across Europe as the imbalance between office supply and demand worsened. Yet the weight of capital chasing real estate has continued...

News: Govt should promote best practice.
February 2, 2004... Scheme trustees believe the government could do more to help with the integration of social, environmental and ethical issues into investment practice. Over half the respondents to a survey said the government should promote a formal code...

News: Eureko seeks stock listing for F&C.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... Eureko BV, a shareholder of F&C, is considering seeking a stock exchange listing for the fund manager. As part of the proposal, Eureko would retain a majority shareholding and F&C would continue to be the focus of Eureko's asset management...

News: US firms look to cut pensions costs.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... US employers are looking to reduce retirement plan costs, following a combination of volatile stock markets and low interest rates. Significant funding issues for defined benefit (DB) pension plans have forced US employers to explore ways...

News: Standard Life eclipses peers to scoop all three IMMFA awards.(Institutional Money Market Funds Association )(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... Global fund manager Standard Life Investments has won all three awards given by the Institutional Money Market Funds Association (IMMFA) for the performance of its money market funds throughout 2003. Over this period the AAA Cash Fund -...

News: AFFS acquires The Bureaux.(Alexander Forbes Financial Services (AFFS))(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... Alexander Forbes Financial Services (AFFS), the largest UK independent financial adviser (IFA) by turnover, has bought The Bureaux, owner of specialist annuity provider, The Annuity Bureau. The company said the sum paid was not material,...

News: Multinational firms lack global pensions strategy.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... Nearly three-quarters of multinational firms do not employ a global employee benefits strategy because they do not understand the value of a universal policy, according to a survey. Out of 75 multinationals surveyed, 73% did not have a...

News: Real Return Holdings merges with Veritas.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... The Real Return Holdings Company, set up by the founder of Newton Investment Management, Stewart Newton, and Charles Richardson, Newton's former chief investment officer, has merged with Veritas Asset Management - a UK and Swiss- based fund...

News: Events - Final salary seminar.(St James Park Stadium)(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... Mercer Human Resource Consulting will hold a seminar about shifting from final salary pension provision at St James Park Stadium, Newcastle Upon Tyne on 11 February. For more details call Elaine Morris on 0131 247 4583.

News: Events - SSAS conference.(small self-adminstered scheme (SSAS) conference )(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... A small self-adminstered scheme (SSAS) conference will take place on Thursday 26 February at the Radisson SAS Portman Hotel, London W1. The conference will examine the implications of simplification for SSASs, among other topics. The cost...

News: Events - New tax regime seminar.(HSBC Actuaries and Consultants)(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... A critical examination of the new tax regime is offered by HSBC Actuaries and Consultants in February. Morning seminars will be held in Birmingham (5), Manchester (6), Edinburgh (10) and London (13). For more details telephone Steve Robinson on...

News: Events - Alternative investment summit.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... Private equity, hedge funds and derivatives will be put under the microscope at an alternative investment summit on 22 and 23 March in London. Speakers will include Urs Alder, senior manager, Man Investments. Telephone 01202 201182 to register....

News: Events - Final salary course.(The Trustee Corporation)(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... The Trustee Corporation is to host an advanced course about final salary investment on 12 February. For more information contact Robert Gravill on 0870 839 3479 or e-mail Robert.gravill@hammonds.com.

News: Events - Tax simplification seminars.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... Aon Consulting is to organise a series of pensions tax simplification seminars for clients this month, including Bristol (28), Birmingham (28) and Leeds (29). Elisabeth Topham on 020 7086 8120 or Elisabeth.topham@aonconsulting.co.uk.

Spotlight: UK's middle age spread.
February 2, 2004... New population projections for the UK have raised again the prospect of British workers supporting a burgeoning retired population. But what's the picture within the working age population? The figures suggest a growing middle age spread for...

Governance Watch: Ever decreasing circles.(Financial Times Stock Exchange )(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... Manifest's recent voting season review for 2002-2003 noted that approximately 35% of currently serving directors among FTSE 100 companies retired and stood for re-election. This figure does not reflect directors who retired and did not seek...

Opinion: Leader - Government should abolish the age 75 rule.
February 2, 2004... In all the fuss created by the pensions simplification and the wait for the new Pensions Bill, one issue, which has not gone away, has been neglected. This is the requirement to buy an annuity by age 75. If the government wants one...

Opinion: Personal View - Good planning will stop you paying through the nose with VAT.
February 2, 2004... Not all pension arrangements are efficient, whether it be from a VAT or business perspective. A lack of good VAT planning can lead to an unnecessary cost and, in more complex situations, errors in VAT planning can lead to inequitable...

Opinion: Inside View - Taking the uncertainty out of mortality risk in annuities products.
February 2, 2004... Life offices need to stop asking the question: "How can we load our annuities for the unknown mortality improvements that we fear?" and instead ask the question: "How can we provide a retirement package that people really need?" Most...

Special Report: Fund measurers taper approach.
February 2, 2004... The financial services industry is choc-a-bloc with league tables in every sector. The pension industry's own table compilers are, chiefly, the fund performance measurers, a field dominated by Russell/Mellon CAPS and The WM Company. The...

People On The Move: Thomas to promote products at Britannic.(Keith Thomas appoints Britannic Asset Management)(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... Britannic Asset Management has boosted its institutional business development team by recruiting Keith Thomas from Baring Asset Management. Thomas has more than a quarter of a century's experience in the consultancy and investment...

People On The Move: Pensions guru retires after 35 years.(Brian Holden MBE retires from Co-operative Insurance Society)(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... Brian Holden MBE has retired after 35 years' service with the Co-operative Insurance Society (CIS). His role within CIS was as pensions manager, with technical responsibility for dealing with other co-operative societies, although his vast...

People On The Move: Salojarvi joins Russell to boost client service expansion.(Russell Investment Group appoints Liisa Salojarvi)(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... Russell Investment Group has named Liisa Salojarvi as assistant director, client service, within its institutional investment services team. The global multi-manager sees client services as an area to expand in line with increasing...

People On The Move: Digby heads multi-manager portfolio services at iimia.(independent investment management and independent advice; Henry Digby)(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... Henry Digby has joined iimia (independent investment management and independent advice) as head of multi-manager portfolio services. He joins the company from JP Morgan Private Bank where he spent 10 years, latterly as vice president...

News Just In... : Standard Life expands DC fund offering.(Defined Contribution)
February 2, 2004... Standard Life continues to dumbfound critics who claim that its capital position will restrict its ability to write new business by expanding the range of pension funds available in its defined contribution (DC) offering. The new external...

News Just In... : Hazell Carr joins forces with Indian tech company.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... Hazell Carr, the UK outsourcer of pensions administration, has signed a strategic alliance with Progeon, a technology company based in India. The two companies will offer clients an integrated onshore/offshore outsourcing option, under...

News Just In... : Savers need independent advice.(Royal London Asset Management (RLAM))(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... Royal London Asset Management (RLAM) said that people are saving less than they were a year ago and that those who are saving do not know how much they should be putting by. There are still major obstacles to overcome, said RLAM, before the...

Update: Communicating Flex Benefits - World Forum: Immigration could stem pensions crisis.
February 2, 2004... Increased immigration could help tackle the coming pensions crisis across developed countries caused by ageing, the World Economic Forum said last week as it warned that many nations are not prepared for the impact of longevity. ...

Update: Communicating Flex Benefits - Momentum stresses flex communications.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... Momentum Financial Services, a firm of independent financial advisers and employee benefit consultants, has launched a flexible benefit package for employers and expects a strong pensions communications proposition to gain corporate clients....

Update: Communicating Flex Benefits - Pensions round robin.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2004... Steve Bee, Scottish Life's head of pensions strategy and part-time pensions philosopher, says the seemingly endless wait for the Pensions Bill reminded him of a story about a rare Norwegian robin that was eaten by the cat of a birdwatcher who...

Update: Communicating Flex Benefits - Communication is key.
February 2, 2004... The communication of a benefits package is more important than the benefits package itself. A benefits package is one of the most effective tools for recruiting, retaining, motivating and rewarding staff. If employees do not know the benefits...

News: Auto entry could see funds swell.(occupational pension funds)
February 9, 2004... Empty stakeholder schemes and other occupational pension funds could swell by 154,000 college and university leavers a year if government plans to make scheme membership automatic are passed. That is the most recent figure for higher...

News: Excluded trustees jump at the chance to join the NAPF.(National Association of Pension Funds)(Brief Article)
February 9, 2004... More than 100 scheme trustees have applied to become members of the National Association of Pensions Funds (NAPF) who had previously been excluded. The organisation opened up membership to trustees for the first time this year. The...

News: Whistleblower tip spurs Opra into wind-up action.(Brief Article)
February 9, 2004... The pensions regulator said it had recently put a scheme in wind-up because it was told that a company director planned to cash in his pension for early retirement and close the fund. The Occupational Pensions Regulatory Authority (Opra)...

News: Barnardo's members opt to keep working until 65 to save DB fund.
February 9, 2004... The majority of Barnardo's pension fund members have opted to retire at age 65 instead of 60 to help keep their final salary plan open. The children's charity entered a consultation period last year to make changes to the scheme after an...

News: Annuitants decide to play safe.(Brief Article)
February 9, 2004... A surge in popularity for guaranteed annuities has resulted as annuitants opt to play safe. Peter Quinton, managing director of The Annuity Bureau, said: "One of the most significant changes [in the annuity market] is the increasing appeal...

News: JPMorgan to canvass directors' views on issue affecting industry.(JPMorgan Fleming Asset Management)(Brief Article)
February 9, 2004... JPMorgan Fleming Asset Management has launched its first annual investment trust survey among 1,000 UK fund directors. The survey will capture what directors believe to be the main issues facing the investment trust industry. It will ask...

News: New final salary scheme puts all assets in global equities.
February 9, 2004... A UK company has set up a new final salary pension scheme that will initially invest entirely in global equities, in what its adviser admits is a high-risk investment strategy. Yorkshire Copper Tube is a Kirby-based business that, following...

News: Clerical Medical cuts with-profits bonus rates.(Clerical Medical and General Life Assurance Society)(Brief Article)
February 9, 2004... Pension policyholders received more bad news last week as Clerical Medical became the latest life office to reduce the bonus rates paid to its with- profits investors. The regular bonus added to its with-profits pension policies has been...

News: Workers need help in setting realistic contribution rates.
February 9, 2004... New research among employees with US 401(k) plans - which are seen as a model for UK pensions - has found a discrepancy between their retirement expectations and their attitudes towards saving and investment expertise. A study by Hewitt of...

News: Kingston joins with DWP to issue combined benefit statements.(Royal Borough of Kingston pension fund, Department for Work and Pensions )(Brief Article)
February 9, 2004... The Royal Borough of Kingston pension fund had teamed up with the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to introduce combined benefit statements to more than 3,000 members. Combined benefit statements aim to help members understand how...

News: DWP takes first steps to compulsion.(Department for Work and Pensions)
February 9, 2004... The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has taken the first tentative steps towards introducing compulsory pensions in proposals that pre-empt the Pensions Bill due to be published later this month. Andrew Smith MP, secretary of state...

News: Government fiddling at the edges of retirement income, says JLT.(Jardine Lloyd Thompson Group PLC)(Brief Article)
February 9, 2004... Benefit consultancy Jardine Lloyd Thompson (JLT) has accused the government of missing the real issues surrounding the provision of adequate levels of retirement income. "The disappointment with the paper is that education itself does not...

News: Risk monitoring service launched.(Independent Risk Monitoring Limited )(Brief Article)
February 9, 2004... A new risk monitoring service has been launched to help pension funds and fund managers analyse risk in collective and segregated investment portfolios. Independent Risk Monitoring Limited (IRML) has been founded by Peter Jeffreys,...

News: Financial education given high priority in DWP proposals.(Department for Work and Pensions)(Brief Article)
February 9, 2004... The proposals announced by the Department for Work and Pensions under the banner of enabling informed choice include an investigation into the communication of the right kind of information both in and outside the workplace. The proposals...

News: Lincs appoints JPMIS.(JPMorgan Investor Services)(Lincolnshire County Council pension fund )(Brief Article)
February 9, 2004... The GBP650m Lincolnshire County Council pension fund has appointed JPMorgan Investor Services (JPMIS) to provide global custody services. Lincolnshire conducted its own custody review and received eight tenders, two of which were...

News: No Tory support for compensation.
February 9, 2004... The Conservative party will not support compensation demands for workers such as the Allied Steel & Wire (ASW) employees who lost their pensions after their employers went into liquidation. The move, signalled by Tory frontbencher Nigel...

News: Employers target escrow funds.(Brief Article)
February 9, 2004... Employers are increasingly looking at escrow accounts as a way of funding their pension schemes. Escrow accounts are funds held outside of the scheme, but which trustees can call on if need be. It is an alternative for employers who...

News: Double-counting led to distortion of official figures.(Brief Article)
February 9, 2004... Double-counting of pension contributions by the Office of National Statistics (ONS) may have led to a minor distortion of official figures for the UK economy. The problem of double counting was raised by David Willetts MP, the shadow...

News: Standard Life Investments fund passes oe25m mark.(Brief Article)
February 9, 2004... A Standard Life Investments fund for retail investors, which was launched in the middle of the bear market, has passed the GBP25m mark. Standard Life launched the UK Opportunities Fund in November 2002 and has attracted investors with its...

News: Birmingham elected SPC president.(Society of Pension Consultants, Robert Birmingham)(Brief Article)
February 9, 2004... The Society of Pension Consultants (SPC) has appointed Robert Birmingham as its new president. Birmingham will succeed Donald Duval when he completes his two-year term of office on May 31 this year. Birmingham is the managing director...

News: Members' fury as Ballast pulls plug on UK scheme.(Brief Article)
February 9, 2004... Up to 2,000 members of the Ballast Nedam NV pension fund are facing huge cuts in their retirement income after the sponsoring employer, which is still solvent, pulled the plug on funding. Construction firm Ballast went into to financial...

News: BIAM wins Tesco global equity mandate.(Tesco pension scheme)(Bank of Ireland Asset Management)(Brief Article)
February 9, 2004... Bank of Ireland Asset Management (BIAM) has won a substantial global equity mandate from the Tesco pension scheme. Tesco would not disclose the amount of the mandate. In the last 12 months, BIAM (UK) has won nine large institutional...

News: Forsyth to advise Jardine on mutual funds.(Brief Article)
February 9, 2004... Forsyth Partners has been appointed as investment consultants to Jardine Lloyd Thompson for analysis, rating and recommendation of UK mutual funds used in conjunction with their pension products. Peter Toogood, chief investment officer of...

News: Maestro - Education is the answer.(Employee benefits)
February 9, 2004... When I first started in pensions back in 1961, only the public sector and a few major plcs provided final salary pensions. The final salary approach started in the public sector and provided the traditional 1/60th accrual. Another feature in...

News: Higher CTF cap seen as a sign for Sandler changes.(Child Trust Fund)(Brief Article)
February 9, 2004... The Treasury's decision to set a 1.5% charge cap on the Child Trust Fund (CTF) has been seen as a sign that it may raise changes on the capped products generally. Providers have lobbied for an increase in the 1% cap on stakeholder charges...

News: Law firms expand in wake of crisis.(Brief Article)
February 9, 2004... The pensions crisis and regulatory changes are seeing certain law firms expand to cope with demand for closures and redesigns aimed at saving schemes from winding-up. Hammonds and pensions specialist Sacker & Partners are two firms that...

News: Ombudsman Watch.
February 9, 2004... BATTERSEA CAT'S HOME Last week I went to see a wonderfully vibrant performance of the musical Kat and the Kings set in Cape Town and performed at the excellent Tricycle Theatre in Kilburn, north London. As a result of this (for reasons...