NETHERLANDS - PGGM has confirmed its board of governors were still locked in discussions on whether to set up a separate co-operative entity to manage the €74.4bn fund.

NETHERLANDS - The €9bn Dutch printers' pension fund (PGB) has announced plans to outsource around 90% (€3.6bn) of its equity portfolio as of 1 January.

SCHEMES are set to receive rebates of £7.5m following a decision by CrestCo to reduce fees paid in 2006 by around 10pc.

New scheme dispute resolution procedures set out in the Pensions Bill have been welcomed by a leading pensions lawyer.

NETHERLANDS - Herman Bril is to take over as group treasurer at Aegon as of 1 March, 2007, filling a position that had been empty since Bas Snijders' departure almost two years ago.

UK - Telecoms giant BT has committed to funding £2.8bn over the next 10 years to its defined benefit pension scheme (BTPS), after seeing its deficit surge to £3.4bn under the new, "more conservative" actuarial methodology.

EUROPE - The growth in occupational pension funds will accelerate in the coming decades due to governments "shirking" responsibility for pension risks.

US - The New York City Pension Funds, which hold nearly US$400m of shares in Google and Yahoo, have called on both companies to lay down standards for enforcing policies on freedom of internet access.

EUROPE - Schroders has bolstered its European property focus after purchasing 99.75% of the share capital of German pan-European asset manager Aareal Asset Management GmBH (AAM), in a deal worth an initial €28m.

CONCERNS over pension scheme abandonment have prompted The Pensions Regulator to launch a industry consultation on guidance.