United Kingdom

UK - Legal & General is to lose its head of funds Nigel Ridge to Merrill Lynch Investment Managers.

UK - State Street Global Advisors (SSgA) has appointed Pia Nyholm as a credit analyst.

UK - As if the state of the pensions industry wasn't chaotic enough, delegates eager to get to the NAPF's autumn conference were left stranded yesterday after being told by police that they were unable to continue their journey until George Dubya's cavalcade...

UK - Credit Suisse Asset Management has appointed Errol Francis to its UK equity fund management team, effective January 26, 2004.

UK - Britain's biggest firms will plunge an extra £12bn into their pension schemes this year to close deficits.

TURKEY/UK - HSBC has renewed its commitment to Turkey following yesterday's terrorist attack after putting its worldwide offices on a high state of security alert.

UK - Blue Investment Fund, a joint venture between Schroders' Gresham Property Partners and Deutsche UK Property Ventures Fund No2, has acquired J Sainsbury Developments as well as four assets from Sainsbury Supermarkets.

UK - Engineering consultancy High-Point Rendel has set up a new-style defined benefit scheme based on "an unusual with-profits structure".

UK - The National Association of Pension Funds has delayed the launch of a new guide which aims to encourage schemes to invest in small companies.

UK - Directors could face "red cards" for breaking corporate governance rules under new proposals from the Financial Services Authority.