Europe

EUROPE - Deutsche Börse (DB) has announced the launch of longevity and mortality risk indices for use in securitisation products.

UK - UBS has confirmed it is working on a plan to launch a UK fiduciary management service for pension funds.

UK - West Sussex County Council has increased its allocation to property from 8.2% to 10%.

UK - Almost three quarters (71%) of pension funds in the UK do not actively pursue environmental issues, but 94% believe they could do more, according to research from eShare.

UK - Marks & Spencer has said it would put £200m (US$403m) into its defined benefit pension scheme over the next three years by increasing the amount of property, the fund had in its portfolio.

UK - Pension funds have embraced unconstrained equity according to Hewitt Associates.

UK - The Pensions Policy Institute (PPI) has said saving in a pension "may not be suitable for some groups of people".

UK - The Lothian Pension Fund is suing Ericsson for an alleged fraud, which it claimed cost the scheme $3.2m.

UK - The Pension Protection Fund (PPF) has admitted it made a mistake and underestimated the aggregate funding position of defined benefit schemes by almost £20bn (US$40bn) in January 2008.

UK - The O2 Pension Plan (O2) has appointed BNY Mellon Asset Servicing B.V. to provide global custody, investment accounting, cash management, securities lending and performance measurement services.