All Defined benefit articles – Page 179
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NewsSmiths uses escrow to help slash £250m from scheme deficit
Technology and engineering conglomerate Smiths Group has signed over its £153m escrow account to its scheme in a deal that demonstrates the positive outcomes that can be achieved through strong trustee and employer collaboration.
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Opinion
How does the use of DGFs differ between DB and DC portfolios?
Roundtable: Aberdeen Asset Management’s Mike Brooks, Aon’s James Monk, Buck Consultants’ Nick Ridgway, Capital Cranfield’s Jonathan Reynolds, LCP’s Kevin Frisby and PTL’s David Hosford, review how DB and DC schemes use DGFs in different ways, in the second part of this roundtable.
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OpinionCharities feel the weight of auto-enrolment and wage hikes
Employer contributions for auto-enrolment and the planned hike in the living wage will put charities with DB schemes under increased financial strain, finds Spence & Partners’ David Davison.
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Opinion
Data crunch: Annuities market being reshaped, not destroyed
We are seeing the annuity market being reshaped before our eyes with astonishing speed. It is sometimes said that pension freedoms have destroyed the annuity market, but is this true?
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News
Methodist Church seeks £25m saving by converting to CPI
The Methodist Church Council is consulting with all scheme members, including existing pensioners, on a proposal to link future pension increases to the consumer price index in an bid to temper the rising cost of defined benefit provision.
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NewsPremier Foods eats away at deficit by more than £570m
Food manufacturing company Premier Foods decimated its IAS 19 deficit to £32.8m from £603.3m since December 2013 thanks to its hedging strategy and a change in discount rates.
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OpinionA relativity problem in the funding universe
Talking Head: Employer covenant has finally achieved the prominence it deserves in the assessment and monitoring of defined benefit scheme risks – in regulatory terms at least, following the Pensions Regulator's funding code in 2014 and its follow-up guidance this August.
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NewsSainsbury's and ITV get creative to tackle deficit challenge
Broadcaster ITV and retailer Sainsbury’s are just two household-name employers to announce “chunky” new deficit funding to weather the harsh conditions buffeting defined benefit pension schemes.
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News
Rebus reviews funding strategy in self-sufficiency drive
Rebus Pension Scheme is shooting for funding self-sufficiency with a review of its investment strategy aimed at boosting returns and diversification, but some commentators have raised questions over its loose definition.
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FeaturesMNRPF takes proactive step to monitor its fiduciary manager
Merchant Navy Ratings Pension Fund has created a three-person oversight committee to monitor the performance of its newly appointed fiduciary manager, an area of scheme investment that is notoriously difficult to benchmark.
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News
QE placing pension systems in jeopardy
Data Analysis: Quantitative easing has exacerbated the movement of pension risk from employers to individuals, placing the future of the entire system at risk, according to a report published last week.
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Features
Clwyd completes strategic overhaul on the back of strong returns
Clwyd Pension Fund reaped rewards during 2015 as it implemented the final pieces of a strategic overhaul aimed at reducing costs and risk without compromising returns.
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News
First Aberdeen drivers see pensionable pay drop
FirstGroup changed the basis for its calculation of pensionable pay last year to comply with auto-enrolment legislation, but the nationwide shift has disproportionately impacted the benefits of First Aberdeen bus drivers.
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News
How schemes can protect their members online
Trustees must be extra vigilant in their assessment of online platforms and review data-handling processes to protect members from the growing threat of cyber crime, experts have said.
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OpinionIncentivising savings – or reducing tax reliefs?
There is still no certainty about the future tax treatment of pensions. The Society of Pension Professionals’ president Duncan Buchanan explains why we might just end up with the system we have got.
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NewsMolins saves £500k a year after strategy overhaul
Cigarette manufacturing company Molins has revised its investment strategy to reduce costs and focus on outgoings rather than capital growth, as many defined benefit schemes creep closer to being cash-flow negative.
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NewsFT chooses new provider as DC governance debate rumbles on
Employers eyeing a transition into a contract-based defined contribution arrangement must consider the impact of a shift away from trust-based governance on members and administration, experts have said.
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News
LPFA confronts employer risk through covenant monitoring
Keeping a constant eye on the financial strength of employers has brought the London Pensions Fund Authority £310m worth of guarantees, assurances and cash since its 2013 triennial valuation.
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NewsDebenhams splashes out more on recovery despite surplus
Debenhams pension scheme trustees have secured higher employer contributions as part of the recovery plan despite having reached an IAS 19 surplus earlier this year, demonstrating the discrepancies between two scheme funding calculation methodologies.
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Features
Long-term view clouded by uncertainty for LGPS
Long-term risk-reduction planning remains the priority for the Local Government Pension Scheme, but growing uncertainty about the future is making it difficult for member funds to carve out strategic objectives.