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Volatility, value, and venture: Top stories from the Pensions UK Investment Conference
Pensions Expert picks the top stories from a busy week, from the pensions minister’s latest update on mandation, to how the biggest schemes are tackling volatility and uncertainty.
Appointments: LawDeb, Mercer, Smart, Aon, Canada Life
The latest hires, promotions and appointments for the week ending 13 March 2026.
Why Nest is embracing deliberative democracy
The UK’s largest master trust is exploring innovative ways in which to achieve better member representation within its governance structure.
Lay trustees remain important as sector consolidates, government says
An external voice is needed “to ask the difficult questions that sometimes professionals either don’t want to hear or don’t quite understand”, says Des Healy of the DWP at a conference in Edinburgh.
Nest pledges action against corporate climate plan rollbacks
The master trust will vote against board chairs if companies “materially” scale back climate strategies, as part of a new approach to stewardship.
Government bodies advocate ‘significant’ opportunity in venture capital
Senior representatives from the Office for Investment, the British Business Bank, and the National Wealth Fund sought to flesh out the investment narrative and explain why pension funds should be confident about investing in UK private markets.
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Is running on DB schemes a bridge to stronger DC outcomes?
Lindsay Nickerson, the new chair of the DC Investment Forum, explores the interaction between defined benefit surpluses and payments into defined contribution pension schemes.
State pension age of 67 is coming – what to watch as it rolls out
Heidi Karjalainen, a senior research economist at the Institute for Fiscal Studies, explores the imminent state pension age increase as the latest review continues.
SPP: Value for Money proposals increase risk of 'herding' among DC providers
As the latest consultation on the proposed Value for Money regime comes to a close, Owen McCrossan of the Society of Pension Professionals warns of negative consequences if there is not enough room for nuance in the system.
Trusteeship and administration: Preparing for a consolidated future
David Fairs, a former TPR executive and now chair of the Pensions Administration Standards Association (PASA), looks into what the rapidly evolving pension landscape means for administration providers.
Latest features
Why Nest is embracing deliberative democracy
The UK’s largest master trust is exploring innovative ways in which to achieve better member representation within its governance structure.
To insource or to outsource? That is the question
Three of the UK’s largest pension investors take different approaches to the balance of insourcing and outsourcing investment expertise and capabilities, as Louise Farrand reports.
What does Alphabet’s 100-year bond mean for UK pension schemes?
The entry of Google’s owner into the UK bond market made an undeniable splash, but the impacts on key fixed income investors such as DB pension schemes are more likely to be gentle ripples, writes Bradley Gerrard.
Ramadan and the impact of Zakat on DC savings
As the Muslim holy month of Ramadan reaches its halfway point, Aamina Zafar explores how Islam’s obligatory charitable contribution, known as Zakat, can affect Muslim savers’ retirement planning.
Inside Railpen’s plan to triple its infrastructure investment portfolio
Railpen plans to expand its infrastructure portfolio from £1bn to up to £3bn over the next few years. The £35bn scheme’s head of infrastructure Lewis Vanstone outlines why, and explains how such investments can support members and the UK economy.
Why Nest is embracing deliberative democracy
To insource or to outsource? That is the question
What does Alphabet’s 100-year bond mean for UK pension schemes?
Ramadan and the impact of Zakat on DC savings
Inside Railpen’s plan to triple its infrastructure investment portfolio
Latest on Defined Benefit
DB liabilities set to rise as life expectancy climbs
Defined benefit pension schemes could see their liabilities rise by around 0.5% depending on demographics after new mortality data was released.
Ostermann exits PPF as chief operating officer steps into CEO role
Richard Beaven, currently chief operating officer, has been appointed acting chief executive and has joined the PPF board as an executive director.
PIC poaches Standard Life investment boss for chief exec role
Mike Eakins is currently group chief investment officer at Standard Life and CEO of its Retirement Solutions and Asset Management business.
Bulk annuities roundup: Athora completes PIC acquisition
Plus: Aviva and Royal London release 2025 business results; Canada Life’s £80m buy-in with Safeway Pension Scheme.
People news
Appointments: LawDeb, Mercer, Smart, Aon, Canada Life
The latest hires, promotions and appointments for the week ending 13 March 2026.
Ostermann exits PPF as chief operating officer steps into CEO role
Richard Beaven, currently chief operating officer, has been appointed acting chief executive and has joined the PPF board as an executive director.
PIC poaches Standard Life investment boss for chief exec role
Mike Eakins is currently group chief investment officer at Standard Life and CEO of its Retirement Solutions and Asset Management business.
Appointments: Broadstone, ICPM, Aptia, Franklin Templeton, eQ
The latest hires, promotions and appointments for the week ending 6 March 2026.
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Latest on Defined Contribution
Why Nest is embracing deliberative democracy
The UK’s largest master trust is exploring innovative ways in which to achieve better member representation within its governance structure.
Amber alert: Industry weighs risks of Value for Money ratings
Amber ratings being introduced through the Value for Money framework should encourage dialogue and reform, not knee-jerk reactions, regulators say.
Employers back higher auto-enrolment contributions but call for flexibility
Polling of 500 business leaders found that 43% think contributions should be increased, compared with 36% who believe they should remain at current levels.
Master trusts should prepare now for scale requirements, TPR says
The regulator set out principles to help trustees evaluate whether their schemes are likely to meet the proposed scale thresholds and how they should evidence future growth.
Latest on Dashboards
Your dashboard needs you! MoneyHelper seeks consumer testers
Phase two of the testing process officially began this week, and MaPS has called on pension providers to spread the word among savers and scheme members to get them involved with the trials.
‘Dashboard health check’ urged as workers unsure of contributions
The Money and Pensions Service (MaPS) should introduce “pensions dashboard health checks” to help savers understand their financial positions, according to a new report from the Social Market Foundation.
Pension schemes seek to address data ‘debt’ issues with digital tools
Nearly 30 UK pension schemes have significantly improved the accuracy of their member data after adopting digital data enrichment technology over the past year, according to Heka Global.
PDP consultation aims to bring private sector providers into dashboard universe
The ABI has welcomed a move from the Pensions Dashboards Programme aimed at encouraging private sector dashboard providers.
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