All European Union articles
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NewsSchemes get permanent exemption from derivative clearing rules
Pension schemes will not be required to trade derivatives through central counterparties after the government extended a regulatory exemption indefinitely.
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NewsLabour MPs table amendment to preserve EU PPF protections
Labour MPs have tabled an amendment to a bill aimed at revoking residual EU law, seeking to retain judgments linked to the Pension Protection Fund.
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NewsBrexit date hands victory to DWP in PPF assessment appeal
The Employment Appeals Tribunal has handed a near-complete victory to the Department for Work and Pensions over a ruling that threatened limits paid to members of the Pension Protection Fund, having concluded that the majority of respondents no longer had rights against age discrimination that had been grounded in European law.
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NewsGovt plans looser insurer infrastructure investment regime
On the go: The government has published a new consultation on Solvency II, with the aim of helping insurers invest in UK infrastructure and green projects.
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NewsThe metrics of a sustainable future
As the pivot towards net zero intensifies, the need for schemes to assess sustainable investment opportunities through data and metrics is rapidly growing in importance.
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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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PodcastsPodcast: Economic uncertainty, DC consolidation, ESG to mark 2021
Podcast: Economic uncertainty from the pandemic and the aftereffects of Brexit, solving the small pots problem and consolidation in the defined contribution universe, and yet more environmental, social and governance regulation are the themes to watch out for this year. These are the predictions for the pensions industry in 2021 from Marc Hommel, senior pensions adviser at EY-Parthenon, and Sue Pemberton, head of technology and DC consulting at Premier Pensions.
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News
UK’s EU pensions liabilities could reach €9.75bn
On the go: The UK’s share of the EU’s pension is liabilities could be as much as €9.75bn (£8.52bn), Lord Bates told Parliament on Monday.
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OpinionThe legal view: Will Brexit affect regulation?
Crystal ball-gazing on Brexit is complicated by a febrile political environment, writes Walker Morris’ Ruth Bamforth, but in most scenarios regulation of pension schemes is likely to remain on the same course.
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OpinionSRD II: A blockbuster sequel
From the blog: It is often said that a sequel is never as good as the original. While that might be true for some films, the new European Shareholder Rights Directive is a welcome revision of 2007’s first instalment.
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OpinionThe day that climate became mainstream
From the blog: Climate campaigners across the country spluttered into their morning cups of fair trade coffee last Tuesday as the Department for Work and Pensions and Financial Conduct Authority published their final responses to the Law Commission’s 2017 report on pensions and social investing.
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OpinionUnwinding of QE still threatens Eurozone markets
From the blog: The shifting landscape of Italian politics over the past few weeks is just the latest chapter in a longstanding narrative of political risk and uncertainty that appears to threaten both the eurozone’s economic recovery and the European Central Bank’s monetary policy framework perpetually.
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NewsTrustee fears on the rise over Brexit investment implications
Brexit has grown among defined benefit scheme trustees as a perceived investment risk, according to professional trustee company PTL's latest DB survey, as schemes are advised against making wholesale investment changes over the next few months.
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OpinionOne year out, Brexit is still a major pensions risk
Market volatility may be the Brexit-related phenomenon that most hurts UK pension schemes, writes EY’s Gordon Wood, but the decision to leave the EU also has implications for sponsor covenants and regulation.
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OpinionWhat the EU’s money laundering directive means for schemes
From the blog: New money laundering regulations came into force in June 2017, implementing the EU’s Fourth Money Laundering Directive and replacing the Money Laundering Regulations 2007.
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OpinionFire, fury and GDPR
From the blog: Hell hath no fury like a lawyer or auditor scorned. The General Data Protection Regulation has unfortunately put the pensions industry in that dangerous position where we have to run a gauntlet, deciding how seriously to take the dire warnings of these two professional communities.
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Opinion
IORP II marks an underwhelming farewell from the EU
The EU’s new directive on pension funds will see schemes producing benefit statements on a yearly basis, while risk-management standards will be dragged up and borders broken down, but the overall impact will be limited.
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OpinionIt's time to put our faith in experts
From the blog: The transfer market has been frantic with activity since the introduction of pension freedoms in 2015. Around £50bn has been cashed out of company pension schemes over the past two years, according to Mercer.
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OpinionNew rules on profit-shifting could affect pensions
As demands for companies to be more tax transparent have built momentum, international reforms are being formulated that could impact tax strategies and dramatically change sponsor covenant.
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OpinionManagers consolidate faster
Editorial: Proposed new rules on asset management fee disclosure could cut into the consistently high profit margins of asset managers, but there are other trends investors should be aware of.