All Spence & Partners articles – Page 6
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News
HMRC consults on GMP equalisation despite Brexit
The government has this week launched a consultation on the methodology for equalisation of guaranteed minimum pensions, indicating commitment to the issue, which goes back to EU law, despite the Brexit vote.
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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.
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News
Industry divided over CPIH
The Office for National Statistics has recently said it will make the consumer price index including owner-occupiers’ housing costs its preferred measure for gauging inflation next year, so should the government follow suit for pension indexation and revaluation?
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News
Share prices hit by DB deficits could spur fresh derisking drive
Defined benefit pension deficits are dragging down the market capitalisations of FTSE 100 companies, according to a recent study, as investors recognise the difference between disclosed deficits and the cost of securing benefits upon insolvency.
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FeaturesNESPF adds DGFs and PE after global equities disappointment
The North East Scotland Pension Fund has taken further steps to diversify its growth portfolio, divesting from underperforming global equities and allocating to a range of private equity houses and diversified growth funds.
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FeaturesComet scheme enters alternatives space
In a bid to improve diversification and returns, the Comet Pension Scheme has added alternatives to its portfolio, as rising deficits and the current economic environment prompt many pension funds to hunt for yield.
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OpinionThe Brexit effect on schemes and stats
It is now three months since the historic Brexit vote and frankly, we are still firmly in the realms of extreme uncertainty, despite each of the two camps apparently becoming ever more certain that they were right.
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News
Advice requirement rules could spell end to consumer confusion
The Department for Work and Pensions last week issued a consultation on draft regulations aimed at simplifying the way safeguarded flexible benefits are valued in relation to the freedom and choice advice requirement.
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FeaturesNilgosc turns to low vol equities
The Northern Ireland Local Government Officers’ Superannuation Committee has made a £300m allocation to low volatility global equities in an effort to reduce overall risk while closing its funding gap.
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FeaturesCAF exits multi-employer scheme to set up own fund
The Charities Aid Foundation has withdrawn from a multi-employer defined benefit pension plan and established a new DB scheme, removing its exposure to other employers’ pension liabilities.
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OpinionCan the industry make pensioners happy?
In David Copperfield, Mr Micawber's recipe for happiness is simple: “Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure nineteen pounds, nineteen and six, result happiness. Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure twenty pounds nought and six, result misery.”
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FeaturesBBC aims to drive down fees in private markets strategy
The BBC scheme lowered its overall investment management fees by £3m over five years, while further increasing its significant exposure to private markets, a move the scheme says allows it to match liabilities at the same time as generating capital growth.
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OpinionThe final frontier: Promises of EMD performance
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?
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OpinionBad cases make bad law
Allied Steel and Wire went into receivership in 2002, with some members at risk of only getting a fraction of their pension before the introduction of the Pension Protection Fund.
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News
Longevity risk anxiety overshadows subtler threats
New research commissioned by investment bank State Street has shown that a quarter of pension professionals consider longevity risk to be the biggest threat to pension schemes, but some say it should not take priority.
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OpinionHow to prepare for a 2016 valuation
For schemes with actuarial valuations due in spring 2016, market conditions are different to those in 2013, with lower yields on fixed interest gilts resulting in higher values being placed on the technical provisions.
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FeaturesSainsbury's marks down deficit by £262m
Sainsbury’s Pension Scheme has reduced its post-tax deficit by £262m in the past year, following exceptional employer contributions and an increase in the discount rate.
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OpinionDiscount rates and denial: Will local authorities soon see pension costs rise?
The last couple of Budgets have focused on freedom and choice, but March brought a little surprise for the public sector, and it is one it would probably have preferred to do without.
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Features
Can risk parity work for pension funds?
Analysis: Risk parity funds promise diversification and consistent performance through risk allocation, but in the current climate of interest rate uncertainty how suitable is this strategy for pension schemes?
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NewsEiopa opts for standardised risk framework
The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority has advocated the creation of a standardised framework for risk assessment and transparency in EU pension funds, quashing long-running fears of a shift to more stringent solvency funding requirements.