The Personal Accounts Delivery Authority (PADA) is due to receive royal assent this week and start its first public procurement process.

There are two common types of pension news story. One that says here is some more gloom for DB, while the other says we have just found another way to make DC pensions more nifty.

The prospect of deflation should not overly concern trustees, according to Redington Partners.

Allowing early access to pension pots in emergencies could lead to greater overall employee saving and scheme membership, according to the Pensions Policy Institute (PPI).

The government is proposing to completely separate injury-on-duty awards from police pensions, in an effort to cut costs and reduce misunderstandings.

Pension Corporation is forging ahead with a plan to raise capital to fund a new round of buyout deals.

The company raised an initial £900m from investment banks and private equity firms in 2006, but is now seeking a further £400m to increase its solvency reserves.

UK pension schemes rank investments as their biggest risk, followed by longevity and interest rates.

Voluntary pension contributions to private and company schemes have plummeted by 53% in just 18 months, according to independent research.

The Association of British Insurers (ABI) has hit out over standards of advice given on pensions in a speech made in New York.

The National Association of Pension Funds (NAPF) has called on the government to issue more long-dated government debt.

A rise in redundancies will hit the trustee knowledge base of final salary plans, according to Lane Clark & Peacock (LCP).

People from ethnic minorities are likely to have lower private pensions than the general public, according to research carried out by the Pensions Policy Institute (PPI).

The fundamentals of UK equities are too uncertain for predicting when the asset class will recover, according to Legal & General Investment Management (LGIM).

Private equity firms believe the Pensions Regulator clears deals more readily than trustees, according to a survey by Punter Southall Transaction Services.

The proposed new calculation for the Pension Protection Fund’s (PPF’s) levy has been greeted with a mixed reception by the pensions industry.

Pension fund members are next in line to be hit by the “empty rates legislation fiasco”, according to the British Property Federation (BPF).

The credit crunch and the recession are proving to be an education in saving for the public, according to two separate studies.

Emerging market local currency debt should be bought by pension funds to hedge against an expected steep decline in the US dollar.

High price-to-earnings (PE) ratios are creating a floor in US equity values, fund managers believe. BlackRock estimates that more than 60% of stocks in the S&P 500 have a PE ratio of less than 10, a situation not seen since 1982.

The UK economy is expected to contract at a faster pace than that of the US, according to Threadneedle Investments.

Chief investment officer Sarah Arkle blames falling consumer spending and high exposure to financial services as the cause.

Sir Mark Weinberg has an impressive list of big name companies on his CV – the fact that he founded many of them cements his position as a pioneer of the life assurance industry. Here, he tells Tom Willetts how Pension Corporation turned its fortunes around

Perhaps the biggest factor denting market confidence right now is the frequency of unpleasant surprises. Let us be clear – a global recession, while unpleasant, is not necessarily a surprise. Many

commentators predicted that a year ago. But seeing apparently strong financial institutions collapse on a weekly basis, that is both nasty and a surprise.

It might be difficult for the UK to justify where schemes were already

funding to provide spouses’ pensions. By Faith Dickson.

Kurtosis

A statistical term that describes how concentrated or spread out a group of numbers is.

As an example, the investment returns achieved by a local authority pension scheme can show kurtosis. Most results from those returns would be clustered around the median and only a small number would be a long way from the median result.

This means the results have high or significant kurtosis.

Robust governance often relies on regulation and guidance, and public sector pensions is one area focusing hard on best practice principles. By Peter Scales.

Investor reaction to the proposed Barclays deal will have major repercussions through- out the sector, says Tom Powdrill.

NAPF Investment

Conference 2009

March 11-13

Edinburgh International Conference Centre (EICC)

Pension security

Sometimes, a soundbite says it all. Last week, I was sitting with trustees interviewing potential buyout providers. One provider started its market overview with this: “Investors have lost confidence in the return of their money, not just the return on their money.”

The credit crunch, with its crippling effect on investments, public scrutiny, and an ever-stricter governance regime, can leave pension trustees wondering not only whether they have the expertise to do the best for their schemes, but also if they can keep up with the changing pension system.

Alternatives is one of those asset classes which make writing about pension investments exciting. Continually changing, introducing new, exotic and unusual assets to the industry, the thrill aspect is easy for all to see.

Alternatives in any market, but especially the battered bear of 2008, offer much-needed variety, says James Phillipps.

Global economic changes mean pension funds must address the corrosive effect of inflation on their investments. Real assets offer natural hedging to help counter the impact, says Simon Chinner.

Background

JPMorgan Asset Management (JPMAM) is the investment arm of JPMorgan Chase, the global banking group. With more than 100 years’ investment heritage, JPMAM has grown into a leading investment management company, investing assets on behalf of private investors, companies, pension schemes, charities and government institutions around the world.

As the credit crunch continues to impact on global economies, pension funds could do worse than try to reduce risk and protect returns by diversifying across asset classes, says Andrew Sope.

Background

For 30 years, State Street Global Advisors (SSGA) has been serving the investment needs of sophisticated clients. Today, it is the world’s largest institutional asset manager1 with £945.7bn in assets under management2 for its diverse client base including corporate pension schemes, public funds, third-party distributors and charities.

Penny Green, chief executive of SAUL Trustee Company, has taken over as chairman of Raising Standards of Pension Administration (RSPA).

Emma du Haney has joined Insight Investment Management as a senior fixed income product specialist.

John Nestor has joined Hewitt Associates as head of distribution.

Bobby Riddaway has joined Buck Consultants as a senior investment consultant.