Finland

EUROPE - Merrill Lynch Investment Managers (MLIM) has recruited Tomas Bristedt to its retail wholesale Nordic team, with responsibility for the Nordic region.

FINLAND - The State Pensions Fund (VER) posted a return of 0% for the first half of 2006, with assets rising just e100m from year-end 2005.

FINLAND - The expected effective retirement age has not yet increased, despite being a key aim of the 2005 pension reform.

FINLAND - The e20bn Local Government Pensions Institution (KEVA) is to reduce its allocation to fixed income over time while increasing the portion of high yield in its portfolio.

FINLAND - Nordea Investment Management has appointed Staffan Sevón as its new chief investment officer, responsible for portfolio management in Finland with operational focus on Finnish equities.

FINLAND - A raft of proposals to overhaul the Finnish pension system hang in the balance as a June deadline set for the ministry of social affairs and health to submit the proposals to parliament approaches.

FINLAND - Reforms introduced in 2005 unnecessarily add to future pension costs and should be reconsidered, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has claimed.

FINLAND - Finns are still retiring on an earnings-related pension at 59, no increase on the 2004 level, even though an increase of this retirement age by up to three years has been a key objective of Finnish pension policy.

FINLAND - The e20bn Local Government Pensions Institution (KEVA) will put forward plans to its board of trustees to restructure its asset portfolio on the back of consistently low interest rates.

FINLAND - Finland's population will age faster than any other EU member state over the next 20 years, but that will not lead to a pensions crisis thanks to longer careers and partial funding, the Ministry of Finance has claimed.