All Mercer articles – Page 8
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News
CMA: Fiduciary management not overly concentrated
Neither the investment consultancy or fiduciary management industries show signs of excessive concentration, the Competition and Markets Authority has found, but the vertical integration of the ‘big three’ firms could distort the market in future.
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OpinionIs an employer-sponsored financial adviser right for your members?
With the introduction of pension freedoms and the rise in popularity of defined benefit transfers, the demand for expert financial planning has gone through the roof.
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NewsBT scheme to keep RPI amid bigger changes
The High Court has ruled in favour of the BT pension scheme trustees and denied BT the right to change the measure by which increases for its Section C scheme are calculated, but BT has said it is considering an appeal.
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News
Companies reduce scheme deficits by £8bn
The combined pension deficit of FTSE 350 companies improved by £8bn over 2017, while assets went up more than £44bn to £781bn, a pensions consultancy said.
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News
PASA selects members for Transfers Working Group
The Pensions Administration Standards Association has today announced the 23 members of its new Transfers Working Group, which aims to look closely at defined benefit transfer delays.
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Features
Islington weighs up equity protection strategies
The London Borough of Islington Pension Fund is assessing three equity protection strategies as part of its ongoing investment strategy update.
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News
Experts call for tempering of freedoms
The UK pension system lags many of its European peers in a report out this week, which recommends restoring the requirement to take savings as an income stream.
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OpinionIs the CDC era about to begin?
One of the more interesting developments at this year’s political conferences was Labour’s conversion to the cause of collective defined contribution schemes.
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News
PPF consultation on contingent assets will create 'winners and losers'
The Pension Protection Fund has responded to concerns about ambiguity in the wording of its contingent asset agreements, with the launch of a consultation to examine the role of such assets in calculating the PPF levy.
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Opinion
Are pensions what the self-employed need?
Ben Jennings is not saving into a pension, and neither are his peers. The cartoonist and illustrator, whose work appears in this publication and The Guardian among others, says he and and other self-employed 20-somethings are too busy trying to pay their rent.
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NewsCMA begins consultant investigation as FCA calls trustees 'weak'
The Financial Conduct Authority has finalised its referral of the investment consultancy industry to the Competition and Markets Authority, beginning an 18-month period of investigation into conflicts of interest in the sector.
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Features
Deficits have dropped, but how should schemes react?
Analysis: While there has been a recent improvement in defined benefit pension fund deficits, market volatility, weak covenants and increasing longevity mean trustees should continue to keep a tight rein on risk and cost management.
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NewsWatchdog referral looms for investment consulting industry
Industry-led proposals to minimise conflicts of interest in investment consulting have been rejected by the Financial Conduct Authority, bringing firms a step closer to investigation by the Competition and Markets Authority.
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Features
Addressing career flexibility could help tackle gender pensions gap
The gender pay gap is a multi-faceted problem that needs a multi-pronged approach, experts say — from financial education to adapting the pensions system to assist flexible working.
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FeaturesCould hybrids solve the pensions adequacy problem?
One has to feel sorry for members of Generation X. Successive studies have shown that unlike their millennial counterparts, whose quality of retirement it is entirely within the reach of policymakers to decide, defined contribution has failed Gen X-ers.
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OpinionHow to protect your scheme when Article 50 is triggered
The triggering of Article 50 seems likely to happen by the end of March 2017, but will this near certainty bring an end to the uncertainty that pension scheme finances face?
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News
DWP blocks Nest drawdown in favour of industry innovation
The Department for Work and Pensions has decided against letting Nest offer drawdown after strong opposition emerged at consultation, opting instead to rely on industry innovation, but some have questioned whether the market will provide this.
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OpinionData crunch: Who advises the DC scheme community?
The answers to this question show that there are still some differences between the trust and contract-based markets.
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Opinion
Can global DB experience help the UK out of crisis?
UK pensions, we are often told, are in crisis. Sustained downward pressure on yields have widened scheme deficits over the year, with the prospect of higher inflation just another concern to add to trustees’ agendas.
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News
FCA reveals transfer data as experts note 'dramatic' increase
Close to 8,000 people transferred out of defined benefit schemes and into defined contribution between Q3 2015 and Q1 2016, figures from the Financial Conduct Authority show, but experts estimate the numbers may be even higher.