Latest articles from Emma Powell

Isle of Wight fund mulls ethical investment policy after council reclaims public health role

Isle of Wight Pension Fund is considering setting its own policy on social, environmental and ethical factors to be considered when making investment decisions, after the council took back responsibility for public health. 

Siemens shrinks deficit with asset-backed funding deal

Siemens (Getty) v2 TEASER

Engineering and electronics company Siemens has set up a Scottish limited partnership for its UK defined benefit scheme to provide additional security for members, shutting a large part of its deficit and stabilising the company’s cash flow.

Caterpillar trims active equities to fill LDI buffer fund

Caterpillar (Getty)

Caterpillar Pension Plan has cut its active equity exposure and plans to sell out of property as part of a trigger-based derisking strategy to boost its liability-driven investment portfolio.

How Nest will respond to Budget changes

Mark Fawcett

Video: Mark Fawcett, chief investment officer at Nest, discusses the state-sponsored mastertrust's forthcoming consultation on how its investment strategy should change in light of the Budget reforms (5:03).

How JPMorgan and RBS give DC members retirement flexibility

JPMorgan and Royal Bank of Scotland are working to offer members of their defined contribution schemes flexibility in how they access their retirement savings, in light of the Budget reforms.

Islington to build on residential property bet in alts push

Islington Council's pension fund plans to reduce its allocation to equities and diversify further into alternatives, in a stated desire to gain greater and more stable returns.

Kingfisher reviews its DC set-up to meet newfound flexibilities

Kingfisher Pension Scheme is planning to review member outcomes as it looks to make sure its default fund fits with the greater at-retirement flexibility opened up by the Budget.

Buy-in market predicted to reach new heights

The amount of scheme liabilities underwritten by insurers is expected to reach a record high this year as buy-ins become more affordable and scheme confidence grows, derisking consultants have said.

Override sought ahead of state pension reforms

Legal experts have called for a statutory override in scheme rules to avoid members getting more benefits than originally intended from bridging pensions, as the industry approaches the switch to a single-tier state pension in 2016.

The Weekly Wrap: June 13 edition

Soper, Stephen (TPR) web

A round-up of pensions and investment stories across the FT Group – from global sales of ultra-long corporate bonds reaching a record high, to the Pensions Regulator's release of its new DB code of practice.

 

Plus the week in numbers:

  • The FTSE All World Index was up 0.2%
  • Total UK insured of £1.6bn of its liabilities 
  • Sales of ultra-long corporate bonds has hit £19.9bn 

 

Most read on pensions-expert.com

 

This weeks social media comment of the week looks at Shell's same-sex marriage spouse benefit policy.

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