Regions

Lucent Technologies will use part of its $45bn US based pension fund to pay for the majority of the redundancy packages of up to 20,000 staff that the firm plans to lay off.

Nick Howard has been appointed as senior communication consultant at global advisory firm William M. Mercer, based in London.

Gary Bowker has joined global firm William M Mercer as senior employment law consultant, based in London.

Sweden's AP3 - the country's third national pension fund - is tendering two new equity briefs for Asia Pacific (ex-Japan) and Japan, worth just under EUR600m.

The Isle of Man Insurance and Pensions Authority has appointed Michael Lightfoot as marketing executive to assist in the island's development as a centre for international retirement benefit schemes.

Quebec's giant pension fund, the C$125bn (US$82bn) Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDP), has invested C$5m (US$3.25m) during the T2C2/Bio 2000 investment fund's second round of financing.

Financial services firm Jupiter International Group has hired Stephen Pearson to its European team in a bid to develop the firm's hedge fund business.

Patrick Pagni has been appointed deputy to the chairman and CEO of Trust Company of the West (TCW) - the US asset management company acquired by French firm Société Générale Asset Management (SGAM) earlier this month.

The Singapore government has decided not to increase the employer central provident fund (CPF) contribution rate to 20% at the end of this year.

Friends Ivory & Sime, the London-based multi-specialist asset manager, is relocating its Edinburgh office.