United Kingdom

UK - Fund manager Schroders has pushed through a controversial pay package for its chief executive Michael Dobson, despite strong opposition from the NAPF.

UK - Insurance giant Aviva is to slash the costs of its UK operations after falling stock markets and economic uncertainty saw its sales of life and pensions products drop by 22%.

UK/US - Biotechnology firm Sygen is abandoning its legal action against Watson Wyatt over "inappropriate" advice on setting up the firm's pension scheme.

UK - Investors should consider adopting an absolute return approach in a bid to avoid market volatility, Schroder Private Bank claims.

UK - Legal & General has launched a capital-protected index plan for SIPP, SSAS and other self-select defined contribution scheme investors.

UK - The £5.6bn Greater Manchester Pension Fund is attributing its outperformance to UBS Global Asset Management.

UK - Nearly half of small and medium-sized companies believe their pension schemes are in deficit, a survey from Hazell Carr shows.

UK - Schemes must overhaul their investment policies or face extinction, Deutsche Asset Management warns.

UK - HSBC Asset Management has appointed Richard Wisentaner to its global bond team as a senior portfolio manager.

UK - The Association of Pensioner Trustees has called on the government to reconsider plans to apply a single set of investment criteria for small self-administered schemes.