Europe

UK - Electronic securities broker Instinet is acquiring the electronic securities marketplace Island ECN.

UK - Investec Asset Management has hired Belinda Morrissey as head of client relations based in London.

UK - Companies may have to create final salary schemes for staff they take over from the public sector following a European court ruling, legal experts claim.

UK - Govett Investments remains confident of economic recovery in the US even though it believes GDP growth of 5.8% per annum in the first quarter will slow.

UK - Rises in pension income have enabled the government to control the costs of means tested benefits, the Institute for Fiscal Studies says.

UK - Threadneedle Investments is expanding the corporate bond section of its fixed interest team with three new appointments.

UK/GLOBAL - Pension schemes want the world's top 500 companies to disclose "investment relevant information" on their greenhouse gas emissions.

UK/GLOBAL - Pension schemes will have to make wholesale changes to their UK-equity portfolios if Britain joins the euro, fund managers claim.

SCOTLAND - Union leaders have accused the Scottish parliament of short-changing pensioners following its decision to wind-up the Scottish Transport Group's pension fund.

UK - Pension managers hoping to cash in on a boom in property prices around World Cup stadiums may be disappointed, a report by Jones Lang LaSalle claims.