An online buy-in quote generator has been launched by Hewitt Associates to help trustees discover if the cost of insuring pensioner liabilities is financially viable.

A fortnight after the GP Noble case broke, all industry commentators appear to have gone silent. Market rumours claiming charges being brought by the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) were just days away, appear to be false – or a false dawn, at least.

The Liberal Democrats have vowed to defeat the government over the pensions bill when it returns to the House of Lords after the summer recess.

It came as no great surprise to read of politicians demanding a further review of public sector pensions (PW 18.08.08). Recent reforms fell well short of the promised radical overhaul and have done little to secure the long-term affordability and sustainability of the schemes.

Focus DIY’s pension fund has received an £8m top-up from its former owners Duke Street Capital, under direction from the Pensions Regulator.

Local authority pension schemes have lost out on millions in damages after failing to participate in class action law suits in US courts.

A proposal to let pension schemes convert accrued guaranteed minimum pension rights into ordinary scheme benefits is being looked at by the government.
The proposal is contained in a consultation document on contracting out regulations published by the government.
The eight-week consultation period ends on October 28. For more details go to dwp.gov.uk/consultations/2008.

Prudential has signed the largest ever buy-in transaction with the £2bn Cable & Wireless pension scheme.

A scheme with a liquidated sponsor has secured higher pension benefits than it could have received under the Pension Protection Fund (PPF).

Twelve pension schemes, with more than 3,500 members in total, transferred into the Pension Protection Fund (PPF) last month.

More than half of small company schemes face failing the exemption test for personal accounts, according to the Association of Consulting Actuaries (ACA).

Trustees must make a sustainable investment in administration to meet member expectations, according to a poll of companies by Aon Consulting.

The nature of pension fund investment has evolved radically in recent years. As we approached the end of the 1990s, investment strategies had progressed from the old balanced approach, but were still largely based on traditional equity-bond mixes.

Two-thirds of sponsors will slash contributions to their pension scheme next year after failing to reduce their deficits, according to Aon Consulting.

The Trades Union Congress (TUC) is calling for greater scrutiny and improved disclosure of the remuneration and pension benefits of company directors.

The TH White pension scheme has appointed Lane Clark & Peacock (LCP) to provide investment consulting services.
LCP will provide asset liability modelling, manager selection and asset transfer advice, and pension scheme monitoring.
Marc Bautista, partner at LCP, said: “This mandate demonstrates that organisations continue to value our proactive approach and our complete selection of investment services.”

The number of pension schemes following a liability-driven investment (LDI) strategy doubled last year, according to research from fiduciary manager SEI.

Credit spreads are unlikely to narrow until the housing market stabilises, according to bond managers.

Active UK equity managers returned -3.7% net of fees in July, according to BNY Mellon Asset Servicing, 0.1% behind the FTSE All-Share Index.
There were negative returns in all major equity markets, and despite managers moving money into equities, relative poor performance meant weightings fell from 41% to 40.6%.
Bonds fared better, with both UK (2.4%) and international bonds (0.5%) providing positive returns.

Guidelines on trustee conflicts of interest have evolved over the decade, but what gaps lie between the theory and the practice, asks Charlie Kirby.

A few hopeful but crassly ignorant observers greeted the latest population projections with glee, seeing them as an answer to our pensions time-bomb. Nothing could be further from the truth.

ETFs provide the cost efficiencies and transparency of an index fund with the trading flexibility of a stock.

The burden of regulation on schemes is a costly one, but encouraging the sharing of risk could help reduce costs and the need for so much legislation.

Should directors be lavished with pensions that have higher contribution rates than other staff, asks Tom Powdrill.

NAPF trustee conference 2008: understanding and controlling risk
November 26
One Great George Street,
Westminster

When asked “Are you up to much at the weekend?” in London & Colonial’s investment offices, Miles Kite admits he’s in the minority when he replies: “I’ve got a band rehearsal tonight” or “I’m playing a gig on Saturday”. Apparently, the smartly-apparelled gents and ladies sharing the office with him continually look perplexed at the idea that one of them is a heavy metal bassist.

The global credit universe is immense and European investors have about 40% of this market right at their doorstep. While the European credit

market is smaller than its US counterpart, Europe benefits from several distinct advantages. The most appealing characteristic is geographic diversification.

Henderson Global Investors is promoting David Jacob (pic) to chief investment officer and managing director of listed assets, the firm’s fixed income and equities business.

Employee benefit firm Xafinity Consulting has hired Steve Power (pic) as business development director to secure new business and bolster service delivery.

Hermes has named Daniel Roff (pic) and Stuart Woodyatt as additions to its risk management team.

Mercer has promoted Craig Burnett (pic) to defined contribution (DC) consulting leader for Europe.