All Aviva Investors articles – Page 2

  • News

    Pension freedoms see more than £7bn withdrawn in 2018

    2019-01-25T00:00:00Z

    On the go: The UK’s fondness for pension freedoms continues unabated, with £1.9bn withdrawn from pension schemes under flexible pension rules in the fourth quarter of 2018, according to the latest HMRC  figures published on Friday.

  • Getty Images
    Opinion

    How to beat volatility in 2019

    2019-01-21T00:00:00Z

    With an eye purely on the numbers, it might be tough to pinpoint exactly what has led to the worst year for stock markets since the end of the global financial crisis.

  • John Dewey
    Opinion

    Schemes need a clear strategy for managing longevity risk

    2018-03-20T00:00:00Z

    Increasing longevity is an important risk facing the trustees of defined benefit pension schemes. By offering a promise for life to members, they bear the risk that members live longer than expected.

  • Features

    What can pension schemes learn from insurers?

    2017-09-08T00:00:00Z

    Analysis: Prudent liability management features among the priorities of pension funds and insurers alike. Experts have previously called upon investors to think more like insurers, but differences in objectives, regulatory requirements and scale mean that total strategic convergence between schemes and insurers is unlikely.

  • Roundtable
    Opinion

    Are real assets the answer for cash flow negative schemes?

    2017-06-30T00:00:00Z

    As more schemes think about how to invest for cash flow, real assets appear well placed to fill the space. But how are concerns over liquidity addressed, and what are the latest developments in the infrastructure market? Five experts share their views.

  • Opinion

    How much risk comes with real asset investing?

    2017-06-29T00:00:00Z

    How can trustees know the risk characteristics of their real asset investments, and how do property and infrastructure compare? Barry Fowler from Aviva Investors, Anish Butani from bfinance, Vassos Vassou from Dalriada Trustees, Gerald Wellesley from HR Trustees and Danny Vassiliades from Punter Southall discuss.

  • Opinion

    Should pension funds invest in renewable energy?

    2017-06-19T00:00:00Z

    Barry Fowler from Aviva Investors, Anish Butani from bfinance, Vassos Vassou from Dalriada Trustees, Gerald Wellesley from HR Trustees and Danny Vassiliades from Punter Southall debate what makes renewable energy interesting from a pension fund perspective.

  • Opinion

    Is infrastructure on pension funds' buying list?

    2017-06-12T00:00:00Z

    Different governments have long been trying to unlock private capital for infrastructure investment, so have pension funds come on board? Barry Fowler from Aviva Investors, Anish Butani from bfinance, Vassos Vassou from Dalriada Trustees, Gerald Wellesley from HR Trustees and Danny Vassiliades from Punter Southall discuss.

  • Opinion

    What is the outlook for property investment, and how is demand shaping up?

    2017-06-06T00:00:00Z

    What makes property an attractive investment, and can it deliver much needed cash flow to schemes? Barry Fowler from Aviva Investors, Anish Butani from bfinance, Vassos Vassou from Dalriada Trustees, Gerald Wellesley from HR Trustees and Danny Vassiliades from Punter Southall explore the asset class.

  • Features

    PPF deficit figures presage hard times for funding and dividends

    2016-09-16T00:00:00Z

    Analysis: Following the Pension Protection Fund’s news of yet another record deficit in defined benefit pensions, many schemes can expect to gear up for challenging funding negotiations, amid growing fears for company dividends. 

  • Opinion

    The final frontier: Promises of EMD performance

    2016-08-17T00:00:00Z

    EMD survey: Performance is what drives investors towards – and at times away from – emerging market debt. For pension funds, the hard numbers count, so how has the asset class fared recently? 

  • News

    MPs press government to incentivise ESG investment

    2016-06-10T00:00:00Z

    Pension funds should do more to incorporate environmental, social and governance considerations into their investment decisions, a report by the House of Commons’ International Development Committee last week suggested.

  • LGPS pooling
    News

    In-house management and infrastructure dominate LGPS pooling debate

    2016-05-11T00:00:00Z

    As the pooling of the Local Government Pension Scheme progresses, some funds have warned of the risks of in-house management and questioned whether infrastructure investment is necessarily a good bet.

  • Getty Images
    News

    Centrica commits £300m to unleveraged infrastructure equity

    2016-04-29T00:00:00Z

    Unleveraged infrastructure is a growing part of Centrica Pension Scheme’s portfolio as the fund seeks to access long-term, stable cash flows, but others warn about the regulatory risk associated with the asset class.

  • LDI roundtable
    Opinion

    LDI: Cost concerns, cash flow and skewed models

    2016-03-29T00:00:00Z

    Roundtable: Six industry experts discuss liability-driven investments - the costs, cash flow impact, European legislation and pitfalls of modelling.

  • Features

    Are LDI models less perfect than they seem?

    2016-03-22T00:00:00Z

    Roundtable: Using models can make liability-driven investment seem like a clear-cut decision, but should trustees be more willing to question these models? In the final part of this roundtable series, Bestrustees’ Huw Evans, HR Trustees’ Giles Payne, Aviva Investors’ Rakesh Girdharlal, KPMG’s Simeon Willis, Cambridge Associates’ Benoît Jacquemont and P-Solve Asset Solutions’ Barbara Saunders discuss the pros and cons of LDI models. 

  • Opinion

    How will Emir shape the way schemes use LDI?

    2016-03-16T00:00:00Z

    Roundtable: Pension schemes have been granted a transitional exemption from having to centrally clear derivatives – a rule contained in the European Market Infrastructure Regulation – but the exemption will end in August 2017. How will schemes be affected and how are they preparing? In the third part of this roundtable series, Bestrustees’ Huw Evans, HR Trustees’ Giles Payne, Aviva Investors’ Rakesh Girdharlal, KPMG’s Simeon Willis, Cambridge Associates’ Benoît Jacquemont and P-Solve Asset Solutions’ Barbara Saunders discuss what the new requirement will mean for schemes.

  • Opinion

    What about cash flow: Balancing LDI and growth assets

    2016-03-08T00:00:00Z

    Roundtable: Liability-driven investment can tie up a lot of cash. In the second part of this roundtable series, Bestrustees’ Huw Evans, HR Trustees’ Giles Payne, Aviva Investors’ Rakesh Girdharlal, KPMG’s Simeon Willis, Cambridge Associates’ Benoît Jacquemont and P-Solve Asset Solutions’ Barbara Saunders discuss if there is still room for schemes to absorb illiquidity.

  • Opinion

    Has LDI become too expensive?

    2016-03-02T00:00:00Z

    Roundtable: Derisking in an environment of low interest rates makes liability-driven investment look expensive, but is it? In the first part of this roundtable series, Bestrustees’ Huw Evans, HR Trustees’ Giles Payne, Aviva Investors’ Rakesh Girdharlal, KPMG’s Simeon Willis, Cambridge Associates’ Benoît Jacquemont and P-Solve Asset Solutions’ Barbara Saunders discuss what makes the decision to hedge so difficult.

  • News

    High Court ruling ramps up fears over pension liberation

    2016-02-22T00:00:00Z

    The High Court has ruled against insurer Royal London for blocking a pension transfer where it suspected the receiving fund could be a pensions liberation scheme, prompting industry observers to raise concerns about protections for members, providers and trustees.