All Opinion articles – Page 88
-
Opinion
Gilts present pathetic value. What are the alternatives?
Low interest rates have become a permanent feature since the global financial crisis in 2008, as central banks attempt to encourage economic activity.
-
Opinion
The cult of the leader: how long is too long for a trustee chair's tenure?
What is more important from a pension scheme's chair of trustees – a steady hand on the tiller, or a fresh pair of eyes?
-
OpinionEditorial: Breaking down a door
There used to be the cult of UK equity. Pension funds were to invest in their home country’s businesses so the accrued capital of workers’ retirement holdings was reinvested into capital-creating entities, driving growth and producing return.
-
Opinion
Treasury: Employers will play a key role in signposting guidance
Talking head: Economic secretary to the Treasury Andrea Leadsom explains the importance of legislation that requires providers and employers to guide people to the best individual pensions advice.
-
Opinion
Regulator: Kodak, UK Coal, and how we work with schemes
A key element of our new defined benefit code is to take a more proactive approach to working with trustees and employers to agree funding plans that pave the way for sustainable business growth, while providing security for scheme members.
-
Opinion
How stubbornly low gilt yields are impacting the bulk annuity market
Looking at the volume of bulk annuity cases being completed over the past year or so you would have to conclude that ongoing low gilt yields are not having the detrimental effect on the market that many commentators have been predicting.
-
Opinion
Is Labour right to argue for extending auto-enrolment to 1.5m lower earners?
From the outset, the Pensions Commission’s vision for auto-enrolment was a regime designed for low to medium earners.
-
Opinion
Managing the impact of political shifts
Some observers argue political instability – primarily as a result of elections – drives market volatility, but opinion is divided over the extent of its impact on pension funds.
-
Opinion
Five tips for any new pension scheme trustee
Any other business: The governance burden on pension fund trustees becomes heavier by the day, making it difficult to believe why anyone would be such a glutton for punishment as to take on the role. Here are five tips for the brave new trustee.
-
Opinion
How global events hit your pension fund
Despite many months of turbulent news stories – the continuing advance of Islamic State, pro-democracy demonstrations in Hong Kong and the spread of Ebola – the markets failed to react to this increased uncertainty until last month.
-
OpinionEditorial: Too hot to handle?
Spare a thought for the asset manager responsible for putting together defined contribution investment strategies. At least, that’s what the Investment Management Association wants you to do.
-
Opinion
Should local authority schemes be forced to invest passively?
Pension schemes make investment decisions based on, among other things, their individual asset mix, desired investment outcomes, risk tolerance, liability profile and deficit level.
-
Opinion
How greater Scottish devolution could affect your scheme
Had the Scots voted for independence in September’s referendum and Scotland had become a European Union member state, the cross-border legislation would have kicked in and defined benefit schemes with members on both sides of the border would have had to eliminate deficits within two years.
-
Opinion
Why industry critics are wrong about 'reckless conservatism'
Dear editor, do you agree with the view that defined contribution pension schemes should focus on young savers’ risk capacity and ignore their risk appetite, because future contributions will more than dwarf any losses incurred in the early years?
-
Opinion
Where bribery is smiled upon: Is paying for feedback worth the effort?
Any other business: With market research companies offering incentives such as vouchers, electrical goods and even hard cash to consumers who complete their surveys, it is clear getting feedback on any product or service can be a struggle.
-
OpinionEditorial: The changing face of guidance
The guise of the much-talked-about guidance guarantee is ever-changing. Last month it changed again with the announcement that the Citizens Advice Bureau would be handling the face-to-face aspect of the guidance.
-
Opinion
Five key charts from the PPF's Purple Book
Flying in the face of almost everything else pensions-related this year, the latest annual edition of the Pension Protection Fund's Purple Book revealed few if any big shocks.
-
Opinion
Are hedge funds a luxury schemes could do without?
In the latest edition of Informed Comment, Investec’s Atul Shinh discusses hedge fund performance – do they offer pension funds good value for money, or are they a luxury schemes could do without?
-
Opinion
Trustee education: can training be engaging and insightful?
US president Thomas Jefferson said: "To penetrate and dissipate these clouds of darkness, the general mind must be strengthened by education." This has never been more pertinent to schemes.
-
Opinion
How to evaluate your investment consultant’s impact
Muse Advisory’s Anne Kershaw looks at how trustees can evaluate the quantitative and qualitative impact that investment consultants have on schemes, in the latest edition of Technical Comment.