Abbey Life will change its open market option (OMO) contract wording after an undertaking by the Financial Services Authority (FSA).

‘Turgid crap’ is how a leading figure at a pensions administrator sums up the legalese and pensions terminology that is obliged to be put in statements to scheme members.

Claimants in the long-running Enron dispute should receive payouts by the end of the year, according to the Goal group.

Pension schemes face planning blight because of the slow pace of clarification of exemptions rules for personal accounts, the £3.9bn Pensions Trust has warned.

The government has failed to quell unease over personal accounts despite unveiling a proposal to cut costs for employers running money purchase schemes.

Pension providers won’t be following Skandia in leaving the Association of British Insurers (ABI), despite differing views on areas of the retail distribution review (RDR).

Earnings for the UK arm of Dutch insurer Aegon have dropped by 39% to £28m, according to its third-quarter report.

The decline has been attributed to the impact lower equity and bond markets have had on fee charges in Aegon UK’s pension business.

The group also said its operating expenses in the UK had increased after more investments in the business and higher employee pension expenses.

Cash equivalent transfer value (CETV) exercises should be reconsidered in light of declining em-ployer covenants and lower fund values, stated Hamish Wilson.

Schemes seeking to reduce deficits should consider funding plans related to the performance of their sponsor, according to a consulting actuary.

The abolition of advanced corporation tax (ACT) relief for pension funds in the 1990s has caused more damage than this summer’s market crash, according to the Tax Payers’ Alliance (TPA).

Terry Arthur, author of the report, said occupational schemes have lost between £150bn and £225bn in growth, as a result of the government’s “meddling” in ACT.

He said: “Political management of the UK pensions system has failed to provide a decent retirement income for many people.”

Pension Corporation has launched an initiative with the London School of Economics (LSE) to produce research on pension provision and longevity.

Falling asset values and increased corporate bond spreads have pushed up buyout prices, hitting schemes seeking to offload deferreds and pensioners hard.

Aon Consulting saw a massive leap in enquiries from members requesting quotes to transfer out of schemes last month.

Fund managers’ poor disclosure of their voting records risks activating reserve government powers that make such practice mandatory, according to Fair-Pensions.

The Actuarial Profession has published mortality tables for self-administered pension schemes to give them a more accurate view of longevity.

There has been much research on the public’s lack of awareness that pension contributions get tax relief, but Zurich’s estimate of 75% of people is quite shocking.

Global emerging markets and small UK companies are among the best performing sectors for fund managers.

The era when private equity managers could generate strong returns without a high degree of skill is over, according to a consultant.

Some corporate bonds are trading at extraordinarily low values, according to Owen Murfin, fixed income fund manager at BlackRock.

“Subordinated bonds issued by UK clearing banks are trading at around 45 pence in the pound and offering a yield of over 11%,” he said.

“Investors prepared to hold on for the medium term can expect a handsome capital gain as bonds trade up towards the pound level.”

Analysis: ‘Are you missing a slice?’ This is what PR agency Fishburn Hedges asked in a simulated pitch entitled ‘Selling the pensions message’ at this year’s NAPF conference. Nick Wright, outlines the approach based on the concept of ‘new realism, old values’.

In the last few weeks the whole financial world has changed. The western financial system has come close to collapse; financial power has visibly shifted eastwards; and unreconstructed Clause 4 IV socialists will have enjoyed the action in the UK banking industry.

Although many default funds can provide potentially strong long-term returns, with this comes the risk of periods of poor performance. By Peter Ball.

IAS 19

The International Accounting Standard that sets out how to account for employee benefits.
This has replaced FRS 17 for most UK listed companies. The principle behind it is that all employee benefits that have been earned during the financial year should be accounted for and reported in that year, not when they are actually paid.

Performance fees are often accepted with few questions asked, so what can investors do to ensure they’re getting value for money – and enhanced returns? By Chetan Ghosh.

On the brink of a Middle Eastern deal to secure its future, Barclays’ reputation could be at risk, says Tom Powdrill.

NAPF Trustee Conference:

Understanding and controlling risk

November 26, 2008

One Great George Street

Uncle Harold

Two weeks’ ago my Uncle Harold, who lives in a suburb of Boston, celebrated his 96th birthday. A week later, he voted for Barack Obama.

Complex accounting guidance, IFRIC 14, could materially change the way pension scheme surpluses are accounted for in company accounts.

Hedging investment risk is often associated with swaps, derivatives and overlays, but the main article from Wellington Management International offers an ingenious approach to hedging risk by maximising opportunities from mainstream investments.

Many trustees have cast doubt over the use of swaps and derivatives in hedging risk, says Matthew Craig, but when correctly implemented, they can prove very beneficial to pension scheme.

Diversification may be complex, but it proves its worth during times of market turmoil, says Christophe Orly.

Pension Corporation has made a pair of high profile appointments to strengthen its team of pension experts.

Psolve Asset

Solutions has made five appointments to expand its governance business in London.

Pinsent Masons has appointed Howard Ridley as a partner to develop its pensions team in Manchester.

Redington

Partners has hired Jeremy Rosten as senior consultant from the defunct Lehman Brothers to strengthen its quantitative and structuring business.