All Pensions articles – Page 106
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ArticleTata Steel staff vote in favour of industrial action over pensions
Tata Steel employees have voted in favour of industrial action over the closure of its defined benefit (DB) pension scheme to future accrual.The official ballot took place on 6 May and closed on 29 May.As of December 2014, the British Steel Pension Scheme (BSPS) had 143,000 members, with 17,004 making ...
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ArticleOne in five not saving for retirement
A fifth (20%) of UK employees are not saving anything towards their retirement, according to research by Scottish Widows.The 11th annual Scottish Widows Retirement report, based on responses from 5,191 UK adults, also found that retirement savings have reached a record high, with 56% of respondents now saving adequately.The average ...
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ArticlePension reforms impact slows down but DC landscape changes
But according to the Defined Contribution Investment Forum’s At-retirement solutions for the new pensions era report, published in April, the impact of the reforms on scheme redesign has been more limited than expected.It also found that many schemes are planning to introduce self-select options for each possible retirement option now ...
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AnalysisHow to win employee buy-in for pension scheme change
If you read nothing else read this…Pension schemes invariably face constant change, including the move from defined benefit to defined contribution schemes.Communications are key to winning buy-in from employees.Pensions change could also be the catalyst for improving the financial education of employees.Employers only have to look at the likes of ...
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ArticleUncrystallised pension lump sum biggest challenge
Complying with HM Revenue and Customs’ (HMRC) reporting standards around withdrawal of Uncrystallised Fund Pension Lump Sum (UFPLS) is the biggest technical challenge for providers, according to research by retirement solutions provider Dunstan Thomas.The poll, which was conducted in May 2015, found that 40% of the 15 providers surveyed view ...
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OpinionPenny Cogher: Complexities and uncertainties around pensions during insolvency
The Supreme Court judgment in the case of Trustees of the Olympic Airlines SA Pension and Life Assurance Scheme v Olympic Airlines looked at what connection a foreign employer must have with the UK to entitle an English court to wind it up, if its centre of main interests is ...
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ArticleGovernment plans action to cap pension freedom charges
The government is planning action to ensure pension scheme members accessing the pension freedoms are not charged excessive early exit fees.It will launch a consultation in July to ensure penalties are kept to a minimum and scheme members are treated fairly when moving their pension to a provider that offers ...
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ArticleLifestyle default funds fall 9% in four months
Lifestyle pension default funds have lost 9% of their value in four months, according to research by Hargreaves Lansdown.Its study, which is based on the average rate of return for all Hargreaves Lansdown savers using a lifestyle fund, also estimates that 720,000 pension savers are currently invested in default funds.The ...
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Article35% who have used pension freedoms are still working
Around a third (35%) of workers who accessed the pension freedoms in the first month after they came into effect in April 2015 were still working at the time, according to research by Hargreaves Lansdown.Its study, which surveyed 304 employees who drew pension benefits in the first weeks after the ...
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ArticleMost talked about news in May 2015
The agreement comprised cash contributions of £270m per year.The supermarket also consulted with employees on plans to close its DB pension scheme and replace this with a defined contribution (DC) scheme.“There is no doubt about it that the current scheme is one of the best, if not the best, on ...
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ArticlePension scheme members withdraw £1 billion from pots
Pension scheme members have withdrawn more than £1 billion from their pension pots since the introduction of the new freedoms in April 2015.Chancellor George Osborne (pictured) announced that more than 60,000 people have made use of the reforms, which allow members of defined contribution (DC) schemes aged over 55 to ...
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ArticleNext generation of retirees expect to be £3,000 a year worse off
The next generation of retirees, those aged 45-to-55 years old, expect to be worse off in retirement by a fifth (18%) compared to those leaving the workplace in 2015, according to research by insurer Prudential.Its research, which surveyed more than 1,000 people, found that respondents in the 45-to-55 age group ...
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ArticleHigh Court dismisses appeal against BBC pensionable pay cap
The High Court has dismissed an appeal against the BBC after the organisation imposed a 1% cap on increases in pensionable salary in a bid to reduce its defined benefit (DB) pension schemes deficit.In the case of Bradbury v British Broadcasting Corporation, the High Court ruled that the BBC conduct ...
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Supplier article
Greece may appear to be in Dire Straits, but Europeans can still be ‘Brothers in Arms’
By Thomas Laskey, Pan-European Fixed Income Investment Manager, AberdeenThe popular German view of their relationship with Greece revolves around the seemingly never-ending financial support they have begrudgingly extended to the country. It is easy to see why Germans think the Greeks are irresponsible. No matter to German Finance Minister Schaeuble ...
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Supplier article
Emerging market bonds face unshocking shock
By Edwin Gutierrez, Head of Emerging Market Sovereign Debt, AberdeenThe Wall Street Crash was a shock. On a less spectacular level — except to the dazed and confused Brazilians — was the 7-1 semi-final loss that knocked Latin America’s largest nation out of the soccer World Cup of 2014. Compared ...
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ArticleHigh Court rules Granada has to pay directors’ pensions top up
The High Court has ruled that a pensions top-up arrangement set up to provide security for unfunded pensions promises for four ex-directors at Granada Group did not require shareholder approval to be considered viable.The case, Granada Group v Law Debenture Pension Trust Corporation, concerned a secured unfunded unapproved retirement benefit ...
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Supplier article
The eurozone: where do we go from here? (Economic Insight)
By Lucy O’Carroll, Chief Economist, Investment Solutions, AberdeenHere is a sight you seldom see: the eurozone economy outgrowing both the US and the UK. The first estimate of GDP growth for 2015 Q1 showed the region expanding by 0.4 per cent, compared with 0.1 per cent in the US and ...
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Supplier article
Modi: one year on
By Adrian Lim, Senior Investment Manager, AberdeenThis time last year, Narendra Modi was being sworn into office amid a groundswell of popular support. Expectations were flying high for India’s new prime minister to fulfil election promises to do whatever necessary to get the economy back on its feet. Share prices ...
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Supplier article
Bye-bye, Miss American Pie — Hello, Les Femmes d’Alger (Investment Insight)
By Richard Dunbar, Senior Investment Strategist, Investment Solutions, AberdeenThe world’s larger auction houses have seen a lot of action over the last few weeks. This is a market that we don’t normally comment on, although much of what is going on is arguably symptomatic of something that we do regularly ...
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Supplier article
Waiting for Godot at the US Federal Reserve
By Luke Bartholomew, Fixed Income Investment Manager, AberdeenInterest rates in the US have been anchored to the ground for six years as the world’s largest economy has slowly spluttered back to life. Recovery appears to be under way and despite the weakness in the first quarter, the moment when interest ...