Europe

UK - A loophole in minimum funding requirement regulations could allow trustees of schemes in wind-up to boost members' benefits, consultants claim.

UK - The Engineering Employers' Federation (EEF) has welcomed recent proposals by the NAPF to reform the UK's battered pension system.

UK - Mercer Human Resource Consulting will be holding a series of pensions knowledge courses for trustees until December.

UK - The Pensions Management Institute has launched a qualification for financial advisers who work with pension scheme trustees.

UK - Royal & SunAlliance has launched an online benefits statement which will give employees an immediate assessment of their salary, pension and benefits position.

UK - Pension schemes are set to boost their property allocations but they will still be only half of asset liability model study levels.

UK - The £250m Parliamentary Contributory Pension Fund is seeking an administrator.

UK - Independent financial advisers are placing too much emphasis on the security of investment returns when advising on transfer requests from final salary schemes, Mark Lloyd & Co claims.

EUROPE - Around one third of European venture capitalists will have be shaken out of the market by 2005 by tough market conditions.

UK - Bridgewell Securities has appointed John Dean as an equity research analyst.