News

The National Employment Savings Trust has appointed F&C Asset Management and HSBC Global Asset Management to manage its ethical and Sharia funds, respectively, it announced today.

Old Mutual Asset Managers UK has appointed Jenny Segal from AllianceBernstein as head of institutional business to boost its presence in the market.

EUROPE - KAS Bank has developed an app for the iPad which enables pension fund managers, trustees, sponsors and fund administrators to access up-to-date fund data at any time and from any location.

NORWAY - Norway's Government Pension Fund Global should reduce its weighting to Europe and will consider changes to its fixed income portfolio, finance minister Sigbjorn Johnsen said in a report to parliament today.

UK - Scheme sponsors are likely to follow BT and bring forward contribution dates before the 2% reduction in corporation tax rate kicks in, experts believe.

GLOBAL - Pictet Asset Management is to launch a pooled fund for institutional investors following growing client demand for environmental, social and governance opportunities.

The Radius Systems pension scheme has undertaken a full buyout with Rothesay Life in a deal below £100m.

US/CANADA - Searches for hedge fund managers and inflation-hedging strategies among North American institutions will dominate search activity in 2011, a new survey of consultants finds.

EUROPE - Jean Claude Trichet, the president of the European Central Bank, has defended yesterday's 25 basis point hike in interest rates as good for the eurozone, as EU leaders prepare for talks on the bailout of Portugal.

Switch to flat rate state pension may damage private sector schemes; BA pensioners to vote on link between inflation and income; ITN pension deficit hit £59.5m in 2010