All Consultants articles – Page 3
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NewsPeers valued for ESG guidance as data concerns hamper reliability
When it comes to guidance on environmental, social and governance matters, pension professionals prefer to rely on their peers instead of asset managers, consultants and industry bodies, as clear messaging is dependant on transparent data, experts say.
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NewsNest hires strategic investment research services firm
On the go: The government-backed master trust Nest has hired a company to provide strategic investment research services.
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NewsCorporate bond managers urged to explain climate transition risks
As defined benefit schemes are increasingly expected to replace their equity portfolios with corporate bond holdings in their journey to reach funding targets, pension funds and their asset managers are being urged to carefully assess companies’ attitudes to climate transition risks.
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NewsSchemes challenge managers to tackle lack of diversity
On the go: Asset managers who wish to continue to work with some of the biggest pension schemes in the UK will have to disclose how they are targeting diversity or risk losing their business.
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NewsBritish American Tobacco secures second buy-in with PIC
On the go: The £4.2bn British American Tobacco UK Pension Fund, has signed an additional buy-in deal with Pension Insurance Corporation, insuring approximately £400m of pensioner liabilities.
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NewsLegal & General DB scheme secures £925m derisking transaction
On the go: The Legal & General Group UK Pension and Assurance Fund has completed a £925m assured payment policy transaction with Legal & General Assurance Society.
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NewsProfessional trustee board appointments increase 60%
On the go: The number of schemes appointing professional trustees is on the rise, with almost half of pension fund boards now having such arrangements, which compares with one in five schemes five years ago, according to LCP.
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NewsAon and WTW cancel $30bn mega-merger
On the go: Aon and Willis Towers Watson have abandoned their planned $30bn (£21.7bn) merger after an intervention from the US Department of Justice.
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NewsPension funds advised to keep close eye on inflation
Recent spikes in inflation have led consultants to advise schemes against buying overpriced hedges and urging them to stay underhedged over the next three years, while looking elsewhere for inflation-linked returns.
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NewsTPR updates board code of conduct following Smart’s appointment
On the go: The Pensions Regulator has updated its policies in relation to its board members’ declaration of interests, following criticisms that TPR did not publish potential conflicts arising from connected parties in its public register.
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NewsOnly half of trustee boards conduct governance reviews
On the go: Only half of defined benefit scheme trustee boards review their effectiveness annually, which shows the industry still has some way to go when it comes to governance, according to Willis Towers Watson.
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NewsBA signs 'first of its kind' £21bn deal with BlackRock
The trustees of the British Airways pension schemes have signed a deal with BlackRock that places the investment management company in charge of the day-to-day management of more than £21bn of assets.
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NewsDB transfers hit by pandemic and rule changes
On the go: Cash equivalent transfer values have been significantly impacted by both the coronavirus pandemic and shake-up of defined benefit transfer advice rules, according to Barnett Waddingham.
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OpinionInvestment oversight – trustees should ‘mind the gap’
IC Select managing director Peter Dorward outlines how trustees need to increase the oversight of their investment consultants and fiduciary managers in a way to comply with new regulations.
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OpinionThe defined benefit trustee cost challenge
Isio director Iain McLellan details how defined benefit scheme trustees should spend their increasingly constricted budgets to ensure good governance, and why sponsors should invest in their own scheme’s trustee board.
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NewsUK pension schemes under-allocated to Chinese equities
UK pension schemes’ allocation to China as a percentage of global equities is generally inadequate, but there is no consensus as to how big the allocation should be, according to participants at Camradata’s Investing in China roundtable.
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News£6bn swap shows insurers’ appetite for longevity risk
On the go: A £6bn longevity swap by an unnamed UK pension scheme and the Prudential Insurance Company of America suggests that insurers’ appetite for longevity risk has not diminished, despite the uncertainty around the long-term impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic.
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NewsDWP admits DC chair’s statements fail policy objective
The Department for Work and Pensions has acknowledged that the introduction of chair’s statements has failed to meet the policy objectives set out by the department in 2014.
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NewsPandemic could have modest impact on mortality rates
On the go: If Covid-19 is confined to the two waves already registered, and the vaccination rollout programme is successful, the pandemic’s effect on mortality rates is likely to be marginal, new research from LCP has revealed.
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News
DB transfer values recover after February fall
On the go: Defined benefit transfer values increased in March to recover around a third of the drop seen in February, according to figures from XPS Pensions Group.