BlackRock is to extend access to its range of target date funds to meet a surge in demand arising from the government’s auto-enrolment legislation.
Workplace pension schemes that use BlackRock for scheme administration, investment funds and member engagement tools can now access the LifePath range of annual target date funds.
These were previously only available to a limited number of pension schemes managed by third-party administrators on an investment-only basis.
BlackRock anticipates that auto-enrolment will trigger a surge in demand for target date funds, which provide a simple target retirement date and actively switch to less risky assets the closer a scheme member gets to retirement.
Paul Bucksey (pictured), head of defined contribution business development and strategy at BlackRock, said: “Employers and pension savers are facing three significant challenges in auto-enrolment, low yields and increasing longevity, and we feel target date funds are a great way to achieve the outcomes they want.
“These finds help employers meet their responsibilities, while scheme members find them easy to understand, and we expect to see many employers offering them as default funds over the next few years.”
