News

THE BBC has been criticised for pocketing £184m of its defined benefit pension schemes' surplus.

ABP has warned companies hit by the credit crunch they must not neglect corporate and environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors or they risk poor performance and scrutiny from investors.

Pension funds' allocation to European private equity funds dropped by more than 50% year on year in 2007, data by the European Private Equity and Venture Capital Association (EVCA) has shown.

US - A small city on the Californian coast could be the first to pull out of the California Public Employees' Retirement System (CalPERS), citing its inability to pay increased contribution costs.

FRANCE - The €35bn (US$54.7bn) Fonds de reserve pour le retraite (FRR, France's reserve retirement fund) has placed four mandates out to tender.

The Australian superannuation model has received an upbeat assessment from a former director of the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA).

UK - Improvements to the biology of aging could affect the longevity funding issue for defined benefit (DB) schemes a panel discussion organised by Punter Southall found last week.

UK - Almost half of defined benefit (DB) schemes have shifted their asset allocations from equities to bonds over the past 12 months, data from Aon Consulting has revealed.

AUSTRALIA - Investment in China has been opened up to superannuation funds with an agreement between the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Exchange and Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC).

GLOBAL - Investors have backed calls for the reform of credit ratings agencies (CRAs), a survey by the CFA Institute has found.