United Kingdom

UK - The Pension Protection Fund (PPF) has appointed credit specialists D&B to measure the insolvency risk of employers who sponsor eligible defined benefit pension schemes.

UK - Nearly half of the companies in the FTSE 100, with collective UK pension scheme deficits of £37bn, paid out more in shareholder dividends over 2004 than it would have cost them to plug their shortfall.

UK - JPMorgan Worldwide Securities Services (JPMWSS) has been reappointed by the trustees of the ICI Pension Fund to provide global custody and fund accounting services.

UK - Pension trustees have a duty to address the financial risk posed by climate change as part of their fiduciary role in managing risk and maximising return across investments, according to a new report by the Carbon Trust.

UK - Some employers in key UK industries are failing to provide adequate pensions for their staff, new research from AXA has found.

UK - The Altro Group, a manufacturer and supplier of safety flooring, interior surfaces and vehicle care products, has appointed Punter Southall as actuary for its £31m pension fund on the back of a formal review process.

UK - Cable and Wireless Guernsey has appointed Lane Clark and Peacock (LCP) DC Link to administer its new DC pension scheme. 

UK - Deutsche Asset Management (DeAM) is embarking on a major restructuring of its business operations in Japan, and has decided to retain only alternatives and Japanese small cap equity in its institutional business offering, along with a small part...

UK - Amit Popat, director of UK business development at Northern Trust Global Investments (Europe), has left to join Optimal, a fund of hedge fund manager, fully owned by Banco Santander.

UK - Hewitt Associates has been appointed as actuarial adviser to the Securicor Group Pension Scheme, which has fund assets of more than £700m.