All Mercer articles – Page 12
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News
Consultants and managers back hedge funds despite high-profile criticism
Consultants and hedge fund managers have predicted increasing pension scheme allocations to the asset class, despite recent stiff criticism of perceived high fees and a lack of transparency.
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News
Schemes plan partial DB-DC transfers to trim liabilities
Legal experts have reported an increase in pension schemes planning to reduce their liabilities by changing their rules to allow partial transfer of members' pure defined benefit assets into defined contribution arrangements.
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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.
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News
Budget flexibilities fail to spur DB transfer interest
Predictions that the Budget flexibilities would lure members out of defined benefit pension schemes have so far proved unfounded, as data show no uplift in the proportion requesting transfer value quotations.
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News
IBM adds cat bonds to mix as it diversifies return-seeking assets
IBM Pension Plan has invested £60m in catastrophe bonds as it decreases its exposure to higher-risk assets and focuses on investments that will provide a diversified source of return.
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Features
Nationwide builds inflation hedge, ups matching assets to derisk
Nationwide Pension Fund has reduced its exposure to return-seeking assets and carried out its first significant inflation hedge, as capital adequacy rules drive banking and building society sponsors to reduce funding volatility.
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News
Schemes eye forward rates to time hedge moves
Larger schemes are showing greater interest in using forward rather than spot rates to assess whether to increase their interest and inflation hedges, in order to gain a more accurate picture of fair value.
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News
Tenth of employers weigh up medium-term DC drawdown offering
One in 10 UK employers have said they will offer members post-retirement drawdown facilities within their defined contribution scheme in three to five years, according to a poll, but advisers still doubt trustees’ desire to govern such provision.
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News
Schemes have scope to delve deeper into illiquids, but confidence lacking
Defined benefit schemes are showing increased interest in illiquid alternatives as they hunt greater yield and diversification, but many lack sufficient resources and the confidence needed to execute such investments.
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News
Covenant-lite market expands as small schemes digest DB code
Small and medium-sized employers’ pension schemes are finding greater access to pared-down, lower-cost covenant assessments following the Pensions Regulator’s revised defined benefit code of practice, which has increased focus on employer strength.
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Opinion
Checking the price tag: evaluating the charges obsession
Data analysis: The Budget reforms signal an age of greater plurality in retirement possibilities for members.
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Opinion
In defence of the regulator's DC code, six months on
It is now six months since the Pensions Regulator’s final defined contribution code of practice and regulatory guidance were published.
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FeaturesTrinity's second bite of comms cherry gets 60% hit rate
The £100m Trinity Mirror Pension Plan’s second attempt at a communications exercise to encourage additional contributions, to make up for the employer's decision to reduce payments, resulted in a 60 per cent take-up among the 1,000 members targeted.
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NewsAMNT: Oz-style 'supers' could emerge from latest UK reforms
The Association of Member Nominated Trustees has said ‘to-and-through’ retirement options could pave the way for Australian-style superannuation schemes, if employers are willing to take on any additional governance burden that a post-retirement commitment could create.
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NewsGilt yield falls confound expectations and depress funding
Investment advisers have been taken by surprise by the recent drop in government bond yields which have inflated schemes’ liabilities and delayed derisking strategies.
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Features
Mercer parent shuts DB scheme to equalise benefits
Marsh & McLennan Companies, the US-based parent of global consultancy Mercer, has decided to close its UK defined benefit scheme to future accrual in a stated attempt to create a level playing field between employees.
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News
Disclose hidden transaction costs, report urges asset managers
Asset managers should disclose the full transaction costs rather than just the headline annual management charge, the Pensions Institute has urged, to allow investors to assess the value of their investments.
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News
Schemes up proxy matching assets to avoid low-yield bonds
Schemes are seeking proxies for traditional matching assets, investment data have shown, as low yields in fixed income make some investors reticent about implementing liability-driven investment strategies.
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News
Schemes consider currency overlay to mitigate fluctuations as economies recover
Schemes are considering implementing currency hedges on risky assets as investment experts predict currency adjustments after a long period of relative stability in the developed world.
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Opinion
Confronting the less-discussed downsides of TDFs
Target date funds are a firmly established part of the defined contribution landscape in the US and are growing in popularity in the UK.