Pensions Week articles from May 2006

Pensions Week archives from May 2006

News: T&N group considers buyout for better deal.
May 1, 2006... Byline: Matthew Craig The Turner & Newall (T&N) Action Group (TANAG) said a pensions buyout with a new provider such as Paternoster should be considered as an alternative to the Pension Protection Fund (PPF). TANAG argued the T&N...

News: Trustees missing chance to cut PPF levies say experts.
May 1, 2006... Trustees are missing opportunities to reduce their Pension Protection Fund (PPF) levies by failing to capitalise on contingent assets, industry experts warned. According to Phil Boyle, partner at investment consultancy Lane Clark &...

News: LCP is latest to lose staff to HSBC.
May 1, 2006... Lane Clark and Peacock (LCP) is the latest company to lose staff to HSBC Investments. Charlotte Richards has resigned from her post as a consultant with LCP's investment practice to join HSBC's institutional offering. Richards is the...

News: PPI issues warning over future high levels of means-testing.
May 1, 2006... Byline: Daniel McAllister Means-testing will spread to nearly half the population by 2050 even if the Pensions Commission's reforms are adopted, warned the Pensions Policy Institute (PPI). Alison O'Connell, director of the PPI, told...

News: Balanced pool funds continue to offer positive returns for 12th quarter in a row.
May 1, 2006... Balanced pooled funds achieved a positive return for the 12th consecutive quarter with a median return of 6.7%. The results from CAPS pooled pension fund update for the first quarter of 2006 showed the longest sustained run of positive...

News: Regulator 'indifferent' to DB closures.
May 1, 2006... Byline: Daniel McAllister The Pensions Regulator was not concerned about the impact of stringent legislation on closing defined benefit (DB) schemes as it set out its medium- term strategy last week. The regulator's medium-term...

News: UN unveils finance principles.
May 1, 2006... The UN set out its stall on principles for responsible investment at the New York Stock Exchange last week. UN secretary-general, Kofi Anan, launched its principles to representatives of some of the world's largest institutional investors....

News: Mercer takes over Newham Council pension services.
May 1, 2006... The London Borough of Newham has appointed Mercer Human Resources Consulting to provide actuarial services for its pension fund. The scheme is defined benefit with a total membership of 16,000 and assets of GBP500m. Mercer, which...

News: Gissings focuses on investment practice as part of revamp.
May 1, 2006... Employee benefits firm Gissings has embarked on a major revamp and expansion of its UK offering with particular focus on its investment practice following a key hire from Standard & Poor's (S&P). The consultancy firm has recruited Alex...

News: Mirabaud to expand in the UK.
May 1, 2006... Byline: Gregor Watt Swiss private bank and fund manager Mirabaud is planning to expand its hedge fund business in the UK by offering to act as an intermediary for small and medium-size managers trying to expand into alternative...

News: Women failing to save for retirement.
May 1, 2006... As many as 65% of woman have no private pension and of the minority that do, less than half expect it to provide enough income in retirement, research has revealed. A report from Investec Private Bank warned that many women will not...

News: FAS clarification.
May 1, 2006... In the article 'FAS payments speed up' in PW (24.04.06), it was stated that hundreds of thousands of workers were set to benefit from talks between the Financial Assistance Scheme (FAS) representatives and independent trustees. However,...

News: Letters.(Letter to the editor)
May 1, 2006... Pensions Week welcomes your letters Please keep your letters concise, preferably no longer than 300 words. On a point of style, please include your first name, your job title, company name and address as well as a daytime telephone number...

News: Investment banks set to lose pensions popularity contest.
May 1, 2006... Byline: Gill Wadsworth A lack of popularity will prevent investment banks establishing direct relationships with pension funds despite investing millions in pensions advisory departments, according to asset managers. Speaking at the...

News: Links vital to state reform.
May 1, 2006... No reform of pensions will work unless the state pension is linked to earnings, the Trades Union Congress (TUC) has warned. The TUC is the latest in a string of industry bodies to stress the importance of making changes to both the private...

News: Cleaners sweep up GBP6 an hour from Barclays.
May 1, 2006... In a landmark deal, 2,400 cleaners across 2,000 branches of Barclays Bank nationwide are to receive an increase in pay that will take them through the GBP6-an-hour barrier. They will also gain access to sick pay, pension and holiday...

News: Industry bodies continue to voice NPSS concerns.
May 1, 2006... Byline: Daniel McAllister Lord Turner's National Pension Savings Scheme (NPSS) has been further pulled apart by the pensions industry as the Treasury Committee scrutinises the proposal ahead of the government's white paper this month. ...

News: Nominated trustees receive thumbs up.
May 1, 2006... Trustees showed overwhelming support for government proposals to have at least 50% member-nominated trustees (MNT) on pension scheme boards. Nearly 75% of MNTs favour formal qualifications for trustees, while backing for the government's...

News: Benchmark - The generation game.
May 1, 2006... Byline: Lindsay Tomlinson A few months ago, there was a brief exchange in the letters column of the Financial Times on intergenerational transfer. As is always likely to be the case, this exchange was unproductive. The younger generation...

News: Change in retirement attitudes.
May 1, 2006... Byline: Teri Harman Nearly three-quarters of the world's population would like to see mandatory retirement ages scrapped and more than a third support compulsory saving for retirement. These are among the findings of the largest...

News: Global economy may make revenue growth harder.
May 1, 2006... Aberdeen Asset Managers' socially responsible investment (SRI) team is favouring more conservatively-managed companies that are able to generate earnings growth throughout an economic cycle. Andrew Preston, head of SRI at Aberdeen, argued...

News: Funds vary on life expectancy.
May 1, 2006... Inconsistent life expectancy assumptions by pension schemes have caused fund liabilities to vary by around 20%, according to research from Mercer Human Resource Consulting. Mercer analysed 28 of the FTSE 100 companies, representing around...

News: View of Korean equity market upbeat.
May 1, 2006... Baring Asset Management is upbeat about prospects for the Korean equity market in 2006. The optimism is driven by strong local demand led by the country's ageing population, who have the resources to invest in equities, while Korean...

News: Fund management company hedges bets with a stake.
May 1, 2006... Morley Fund Management has taken a 56% stake in ORN Capital, the hedge fund management company. The fund manager claimed the move would accelerate its alternatives strategy and broaden the range of absolute return products. James...

News: Pension reforms bad news for small firms.
May 1, 2006... Byline: Teri Harman Two-thirds of smaller firms think the Pensions Commission's proposed state pension reforms are too complex, putting pressure on the government to adopt more radical changes in its white paper, which is expected this...

News: Business services outsourcing provides expansion opportunity.
May 1, 2006... Consultant subsidiary Diligenta has entered the UK business procurement outsourcing (BPO) life assurance market with a GBP486m deal with Pearl Group, the closed fund business. Diligenta, subsidiary of information technology consultants...

News: NAPF Notice Board.
May 1, 2006... NAPF Online Learning Trustee training needs analysis From April 2006, the Pensions Regulator's code of practice sets out guidance for trustees on how they must comply with the Pensions Act 2004 requirements for knowledge, understanding...

News: Ombudsman Watch.
May 1, 2006... Risk I chaired a pensions seminar a month or two ago at which I spoke about 'the big picture'. I started by defining risk. I defined risk for the individual as "not having enough money in retirement to maintain your standard of living (and...

Campaign for Pensions Justice: Reporting the reality behind the headlines.
May 1, 2006... Nigel Hawkes - Lionheart Pension Scheme "As a trustee and deferred member of the above scheme, I think it highlights perfectly some of the flaws in past and existing legislation. The scheme includes approximately 300 pensioners and 600...

Governance Watch: Lloyds TSB keeps its word and restricts EU donations.
May 1, 2006... Lloyds TSB Group will be holding its annual general meeting (AGM) on May 11, 2006 and RREV is recommending shareholders vote in favour of all resolutions. Several of the agenda items relate to the authorisation of political donations. The...

Spotlight: Testing the water.
May 1, 2006... Byline: Adam Mills As fund managers focusing on active management of smaller UK companies in the process of or needing change, there are several tenets that need to be considered. The first port of call is company management. We need...

Opinion: Leader - All mouth and no trousers on the road to equality.
May 1, 2006... Byline: Gill Wadsworth In November last year the government produced a report focusing on women and their (lack of) retirement provision. The reassuring smiles of David Blunkett, then work and pensions secretary, and Harriet Harman,...

Personal View: The shifting sands of time spread greater risks to those affected.
May 1, 2006... Byline: Richard Lacaille Pension systems in Europe face two long-term problems that are pulling investment policy in opposite directions. First is the increase in life expectancy; second is the growing political importance of pensions. At...

Opinion: Inside View - Playing a dangerous game of risk for high yield returns.
May 1, 2006... Byline: Gareth Isaac An interesting change in the mindset of some real money investors has occurred with regard to higher yielding assets. The once pragmatic and conservative attitude taken to analysing the risk and reward profile of an...

Virtual Investment Committee.
May 1, 2006... Byline: Gill Wadsworth Committee Profiles Peter Redhead, director, Independent Trustee Services & managing director, Pension Capital Strategies (a member of the Jardine Lloyd Thompson Group) Peter Redhead is a qualified actuary...

People on the Move: Fidelity appoints new head of multi-manager business.
May 1, 2006... Byline: Teri Harman Fidelity International has appointed Simon Ellis as head of its multi-manager business. In this newly created role, Ellis will be responsible for expanding Fidelity's multi-manager business across all the group's...

People on the Move: Sixth pensions specialist joins Pinsent Mason.
May 1, 2006... Law firm Pinsent Masons has recruited Carol Jones as an associate within its pensions group. Jones will join the firm's London office on May 8. Her appointment follows the hire of a new pensions team at Pinsent Masons' Leeds office. ...

People on the Move: Boost to Morley's UK equities team.
May 1, 2006... Morley Fund Management has boosted its UK equities team with the appointment of Mervyn Douglas to a newly created fund manager position. Douglas will focus on running retail and institutional high alpha portfolios and will report to David...

People on the Move: Opportunity for partnership in equity analysis at JO Hambro.
May 1, 2006... JO Hambro Capital Management (JOHCM) has appointed Ben Leyland as equity analyst on the firm's UK opportunities fund. Leyland will work alongside John Wood on the fund. He joins JOCHM from Schroders, where he worked for five years as...

People on the Move: Equity man moves.
May 1, 2006... Jeremy Smith has been appointed UK equity manager at Neptune Investment Management. Smith, who will join the company in July, is moving from Schroders after 14 years on the company's UK equity desk, where he managed the UK large cap fund...

People on the Move: Key focus on building and managing client relationships at Aon Consulting.
May 1, 2006... Aon Consulting has appointed Richard Cox as client relationship director to head up the firm's Birmingham office. Cox's key priority is to build upon existing relationships with other Birmingham professionals including solicitors and...

People on the Move: Skerman joins Ecofin.
May 1, 2006... Tim Skerman has joined Ecofin, the specialist utilities and infrastructure investment firm, as senior investment analyst, special situations, at its London office. Skerman was previously a consultant at Irish firm Tynagh Energy. He has...

News: Turner pushes for an end to means-testing.
May 8, 2006... Byline: Joanne McCulloch It would be "dangerous" to implement a national savings account and auto- enrolment unless the government cuts means-testing, Lord Turner has warned. Speaking to PW, the Pensions Commission chairman urged the...

News: Lords side with commission proposals at eleventh hour.
May 8, 2006... Byline: Gill Wadsworth The House of Lords has endorsed the Pensions Commission proposals just as the government retires to consider its proposals on pension reform. In a debate in the upper house last week, the lords declared...

News: Hogarth quits NTGI to go head-hunting.
May 8, 2006... Byline: Gill Wadsworth Northern Trust Global Investments (NTGI) has lost its most senior client- facing employee outside the US just weeks after boosting its sales team. Gordon Hogarth, NTGI's director of UK and European sales, has...

Pensions Commission News: Pensions industry shuns NPSS...
May 8, 2006... Byline: Joanne McCulloch The pensions industry would rather "swallow razor blades" than support the government's National Pension Savings Scheme (NPSS) under the current system of means-testing, Ned Cazalet has warned. The senior...

Pensions Commission News: ...but charities support Turner's saving plan.
May 8, 2006... Byline: Daniel McAllister Charities, think tanks and non-governmental organisations all gave glowing support for Lord Turner's National Pension Savings Scheme (NPSS) at the House of Commons Work and Pensions Committee inquiry into pension...

Pensions Commission News: Brown's compromise over state pension is 'nowhere near enough' to achieve reform.
May 8, 2006... Indications that the chancellor will increase spending on the state pension and link it to earnings for those aged over 75 will "not go far enough", industry leaders warned. The National Association of Pension Funds (NAPF) said the...

Pensions Commission News: Top providers suggest dual NPSS charges.
May 8, 2006... Byline: Matthew Craig Two of Britain's largest pension providers are calling for a dual charging structure for the proposed National Pension Savings Scheme (NPSS). Standard Life and Legal & General (L&G) said an annual charge, plus a...

Pensions Commission News: Reform group chairman attacks Turner's proposals.
May 8, 2006... Former pensions minister Frank Field accused Lord Turner of living in a fool's paradise for proposing a National Pension Savings Scheme (NPSS) as a key feature of pension reform. The chairman of the Pensions Reform Group's (PRG) damning...

News: Trustee review likely.
May 8, 2006... Byline: Joanne McCulloch Trustee champion Brian Holden has gained government support for an independent review into the role of trustees. Several ministers in both the House of Commons and House of Lords have backed the investigation,...

News: Carter and Watts go for a double retirement after Watson Wyatt sale.
May 8, 2006... Watson Wyatt has lost two of its most high profile employees following the retirement of Kevin Carter and Nick Watts. Carter, who held the post of European head of investment consulting following Watts' decision to take a back seat last...

News: Harrods shows some Insight in hiring fixed income fund manager to run brief.
May 8, 2006... Insight Investment has picked up a fixed income brief worth nearly GBP50m with one of the UK's best-known retailers. Harrods, the London-based department store, has appointed the fund manager to run GBP46.5m of its pension fund...

Letters: Intelligent, quality training is out there.(Letter to the editor)
May 8, 2006... Clive Gilchrist in his 'Trustee' column (PW 17.04.06) considers "there is no practical alternative" to multiple choice tests, and that the newly developing web-based trustee course on the Pensions Regulator's website "is the only way of...

News: Confusion over DB regulation.
May 8, 2006... Byline: Daniel McAllister The pensions industry is divided over the Pensions Regulator's approach to funding defined benefit (DB) schemes with many welcoming it as "refreshing" while others labelled it "muddled". The responses came as...

News: Aberdeen offers ethical UK fund.
May 8, 2006... Pension fund demand for high standards of corporate governance has driven Aberdeen Asset Management to offer a socially responsible investment (SRI) fund. The Ethical Engagement UK fund will pursue long-term growth by engaging with UK...

News: Leicester scheme ditches Barclays.
May 8, 2006... A GBP2bn local authority pension scheme has dropped Barclays Global Investors (BGI) following the trustees' rejection of passive management. A major strategic review of the Leicester County Council pension scheme saw Goldman Sachs Asset...

News: Public find HMRC claim forms too confusing.
May 8, 2006... Byline: Ruth Emery Nearly a third of enhanced protection claim forms have been rejected by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) sparking accusations that they contain 'trick questions' and are 'immensely confusing'. HMRC has received 984 of...

News: Left Field - Whiter shade of pale.
May 8, 2006... Byline: Frank Field The informed opinion around the traps is that the government's pensions white paper will fall into two parts. The first will deal with the reform of the basic state pension (BSP). The second section outlines how the...

News: F&C's unprecedented move to insource.
May 8, 2006... F&C Asset Management has taken over the management of its proxy voting system, absolving the need for a middle-man. The company will coordinate the voting chain directly through its own platform, with the help of a team of 15 dedicated...

News: A promising future for UK gilts.
May 8, 2006... Byline: Gill Wadsworth Concern about UK gilt yields and the need for pension funds to ditch their domestic bias could be misplaced, according to a global economist. Haydn Davies, chief economist at Barclays Global Investors (BGI),...

News: Funds perform below average.
May 8, 2006... Pension scheme managed fund investments slumped during April despite three months of strong growth during the first quarter, figures by Rubicon Investment Consulting showed. The average fund returned just -0.1% for the month, bringing the...

News: Higher returns with no added risk.
May 8, 2006... Goldman Sachs Asset Management (GSAM) has launched three fixed income funds in a bid to give clients higher returns with no added risk. The funds, which will fit under the new UCITS III legislation, will take a less constrained approach to...

News: Events - Mercer courses.
May 8, 2006... Mercer Human Resource Consulting is organising the following courses and seminars over the next three months: Life after the cross-border pensions regulations, May 15 in London. Contact Bernice Long on 020 7178 3782. Pensions, get me...

News: Events - Beginner and expert.
May 8, 2006... Watson Wyatt is offering a range of bespoke and open courses for both experienced trustees wanting to extend their knowledge, and those new to pensions. For further information call 020 7222 9182, or visit watsonwyatt.com

News: Events - Southampton seminar.
May 8, 2006... Lane Clark & Peacock is hosting a free morning seminar in Southampton - 'The changing dynamics of pension scheme relationships' - on May 25 to help trustees, finance directors and pension managers understand the changing pension landscape and...

News: Standard Life wins record DC contract.
May 8, 2006... Byline: Joanne McCulloch Standard Life has clinched a GBP700m mandate to provide investment services to Citigroup's four defined contribution (DC) schemes - the largest win of its kind for the Scottish insurer. The deal follows a detailed...

News: Confused public flocks to IFAs.
May 8, 2006... Up to half the population are baffled by pensions, investments and protection products leading to a rush for independent financial advice, research by Defaqto has shown. Its survey of 970 adults found that just 38% - 17.6 million people -...

News: NAPF Notice Board.
May 8, 2006... NAPF - Trustees in the spotlight Pension scheme trustees are facing an entirely new regulatory framework for schemes, the sweeping away of the old tax rules, and the wider agenda for pensions in the post-Turner world. So what is being...

News: Ombudsman Watch.
May 8, 2006... Friends of the Elderly You may recall that recently I mentioned I was thinking of parting with my 10-year-old Toyota Picnic (it's a car for readers who missed that particular column). I asked readers to suggest the most appropriate...

Campaign for Pensions Justice: Reporting the reality behind the headlines.
May 8, 2006... Mike Biggs - APW "I was employed as a regional sales manager by Vero Electronics (later to become APW Electronics) in April 1995 and shortly after joining the company, was invited to join the pension scheme. At the time I had money...

Governance Watch: Director's independence is Next in line for assessment.
May 8, 2006... Next will be holding its annual general meeting (AGM) on May 2, 2006 and RREV is raising several corporate governance concerns in its report on the company. RREV is recommending a vote against non-executive director (NED), Derek...

Profile: Walking the tightrope of change.
May 8, 2006... Picking up one of the UK's highest profile liability-driven investment (LDI) mandates was one of State Street Global Advisors' (SSGA) high points last year. The multi-billion pound WH Smith pension fund appointed the investment manager to run...

Opinion: Leader - Pay your money and make the right choice.
May 8, 2006... Byline: Gill Wadsworth When three charities and an independent body tasked with promoting equal opportunities unanimously agree on the future for UK pension reform, it's bound to create discomfort among those with vested business interests...

Opinion: Personal View - UK pensions funds and American class actions.
May 8, 2006... Byline: Wyn Derbyshire Among the avalanche of pensions articles published in the media over recent months - discussing issues ranging from the reverberations emerging from the Pensions Commissions report, to the ongoing saga of schemes in...

Opinion: Inside View - Diversifying a fixed income portfolio with hedge funds.
May 8, 2006... Byline: William Benjamin Allocating a portion of a fixed income portfolio to a suite of hedge funds can improve the overall risk/return characteristics of the strategy, given the low correlation between the two asset classes. This can be...

Special Focus: Content.
May 8, 2006... Relinquishing control of something you have ultimate responsibility for is never easy. For many UK pension fund trustees, giving their investment managers greater freedom to manage their assets is quite a daunting step, particularly given...

Special Focus: Taking a risk + manager skill = high fund performance.
May 8, 2006... Byline: Ceri Jones Unconstrained investing means different things to different people, but is, broadly, taking positions in assets irrespective of the benchmark. Managers are allowed freedom to implement their best ideas, with complete...

Special Focus: How unconstrained should mandates be?
May 8, 2006... Byline: James Fairweather The growing interest in unconstrained investing has been driven by the search for higher returns and a widespread recognition that traditional benchmarks are imperfect tools. For example, the top 10 stocks in the...

Special Focus: Q&A - A global search for alpha.
May 8, 2006... Byline: Alison Hamilton The questions 1. Tell us about your Global Alpha product. 2. Where do your stock ideas come from? 3. What additional work is done to identify the best candidates for the portfolio? 4. How do you...

Company Profile: Martin Currie.
May 8, 2006... Background Martin Currie is a specialist active equity manager. Based in Edinburgh, the company manages GBP12.3bn in segregated and pooled portfolios for 160 clients around the world, including pension funds, family offices,...

Pensions and Simplification Update: May 2006.
May 8, 2006... Regulations: Government response to the Pension Protection Fund regulations Description: The government has published its response to the consultation on 10 sets of regulations referred to generally as the Pension Protection Fund (PPF)...

People on the Move: Pedley moves across pond to take MD position at BNY.
May 8, 2006... Byline: Joanne McCulloch The Bank of New York has appointed Tony Pedley as managing director, head of European pensions client management - a role formerly held by Benjie Fraser. Pedley - who joins from SEI Investments Europe, where...

People on the Move: Former chancellor Lawson now non- exec chair of OIP.
May 8, 2006... Former chancellor of the exchequer Lord Lawson of Blaby has been appointed a non-executive chairman of Oxford Investment Partners. The company, which is owned by three Oxford colleges and has its own management team, manages investments for...