On the go: An industry group has been set up to work on implementing, promoting and encouraging the use of new cost transparency templates across the pensions and investment industries, with the aim of encouraging more consistent disclosure of costs.
These templates will allow for comparisons to be made across suppliers, which in turn will make it easier for trustees to scrutinise and challenge costs.
Mel Duffield, the pensions strategy executive at the Universities Superannuation Scheme, who leads the new group, which is called the Cost Transparency Initiative, said: “It hasn’t always been possible for trustees to compare costs between different services because of a lack of clarity and consistency.”
“By introducing a robust way to define and measure the full cost of investing, we have a golden opportunity to make a real difference across the institutional investment market.”
The group is supported by the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association, Investment Association and Local Government Pension Scheme Advisory Board.
Its inauguration follows the Institutional Disclosure Working Group’s recommendations to the Financial Conduct Authority in June 2018.
These included templates for data collection and disclosure, arrangements that need to be in place to ensure the templates are maintained, how to encourage providers to offer information using the templates and how to encourage more users to request information on the format from their providers.
Christopher Woolard, executive director of strategy and competition at the FCA, said: “The CTI has the right experience, resources and market coverage, and will represent a broad and balanced range of suppliers and clients of the institutional asset management industry to deliver results in the market and continue to build on the momentum created by the IDWG.”
