Skip to main content
MENU
Subscribe
  • Sign Up Free
  • LOGIN
  • Subscribe
  • Topics
    • Alternatives
    • Consultants
    • Coronavirus
    • Courts
    • Defined Contribution
    • ESG
    • ETFs
    • Face to Face
    • Hedge Funds
    • Industry Voices
    • Investing
    • Money Management
    • Opinion
    • Partner Content
    • Pension Funds
    • Private Equity
    • Real Estate
    • Russia-Ukraine War
    • SECURE 2.0
    • Special Reports
    • White Papers
  • Rankings & Awards
    • 1,000 Largest Retirement Plans
    • Top-Performing Managers
    • Largest Money Managers
    • DC Money Managers
    • DC Record Keepers
    • Largest Hedge Fund Managers
    • World's Largest Retirement Funds
    • Best Places to Work in Money Management
    • Excellence & Innovation Awards
    • WPS Innovation Awards
    • Eddy Awards
  • ETFs
    • Latest ETF News
    • Fund Screener
    • Education Center
    • Equities
    • Fixed Income
    • Commodities
    • Actively Managed
    • Alternatives
    • ESG Rated
  • ESG
    • Latest ESG News
    • The Institutional Investor’s Guide to ESG Investing
    • ESG Sustainability - Gaining Momentum
    • ESG Investing | Industry Brief
    • Innovation in ESG Investing
    • 2023 ESG Investing Conference
    • ESG Rated ETFs
  • Defined Contribution
    • Latest DC News
    • DC Money Manager Rankings
    • DC Record Keeper Rankings
    • Innovations in DC
    • Trends in DC: Focus on Retirement Income
    • 2023 Defined Contribution East Conference
  • Searches & Hires
    • Latest Searches & Hires News
    • Searches & Hires Database
    • RFPs
  • Research Center
    • The P&I Research Center
    • Earnings Tracker
    • Endowment Returns Tracker
    • Corporate Pension Contribution Tracker
    • Pension Fund Returns Tracker
    • Pension Risk Transfer Database
  • Careers
  • Events
    • View All Conferences
    • View All Webinars
    • 2023 ESG Investing
    • 2023 Private Markets
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. DEFINED BENEFIT
September 27, 2017 01:00 AM

PLSA group makes recommendations to strengthen DB plans

Sophie Baker
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Reprints Print
    Getty Images

    The U.K. government and retirement industry should work on further developing and testing a "superfund" framework for corporate pension funds, said the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association's defined benefit task force.

    In its final report, the task force outlined a range of options to help the almost 6,000 U.K. corporate funds deal with underfunding, weak employer backing (known as covenants) and lack of scale.

    As part of its work, the task force undertook employer research to ascertain the level of interest in consolidation of funds, with 65% saying they would support the principle of consolidation. Support for shared administration was at 72% and 66% for shared external advisers. Shared governance was supported by 64% of respondents, with 54% in favor of asset pooling under one money manager.

    "The task force's analysis of a potential superfund framework moves forward significantly the case for considering how employers can be enabled to swap covenants for cash," said Ashok Gupta, chair of the task force, in a statement accompanying the final report. "We call on industry and the government to work with us to further develop and test this framework."

    The report makes three main recommendations on the U.K.'s DB market. The first is a requirement to publish an annual statement showing the funds are operating with best practices in areas such as governance, investment performance and cost transparency. The Pensions Regulator "could also use this mechanism to ensure trustees explicitly consider the potential benefits of consolidation for their scheme," said the report.

    The second recommendation is to make it easier to standardize and simplify benefits. "The current complexity of some schemes ... is not only a barrier to greater efficiency for all schemes and better member communication, but also remains a practical obstacle to consolidating schemes in a way which maximizes the potential gains from economies of scale," said the report.

    The third recommendation is to help pension funds struggling with both underfunding and employer covenant risk. It would allow them to "exchange an unknown and intangible covenant for stronger and more secure backing from a larger sponsor. A superfund vehicle could consolidate assets and liabilities of participating pension schemes, reducing the risk to members' benefits and offering a new option which could release employers from legacy DB obligations and allow them to invest in business growth."

    The report is available on the PLSA website.

    Related Articles
    PLSA report shows growing default risk for corporate U.K. pension funds
    Number of corporate U.K. plans open to new employees continues to drop
    PLSA warns against classifying U.K. pension plans as retail investors under MiF…
    Pension funds, regulators throw support behind U.K. superfunds despite questions
    Commentary: Advantages of pooling are too great to ignore
    U.K.'s PLSA looking to develop national retirement income targets
    New PLSA chairman pledges more openness regarding policy proposals
    Higher retirement plan contributions needed, conference speakers say
    Recommended for You
    R.I. treasurer seeks transparency laws for church plans
    R.I. treasurer seeks transparency laws for church plans
    Public pension funds adopt cost-sharing mechanisms to stem volatility
    Public pension funds adopt cost-sharing mechanisms to stem volatility
    Avery Dennison to terminate U.S. pension plan
    Avery Dennison to terminate U.S. pension plan
    ESG Investing | Industry Brief
    Sponsored Content: ESG Investing | Industry Brief

    Reader Poll

    March 22, 2023
    SEE MORE POLLS >
    Sponsored
    White Papers
    Global Fixed Income: Volatility and Uncertainty Here to Stay
    Valuing Banks: Hidden Losses Versus Assets
    2023 Outlook: The Top Five Trends to Monitor in the Year Ahead
    Targeting Impact with Indexes
    Show Me the Income: Discovering plan sponsor and participant preferences for cr…
    The Future of Infrastructure: Building a Better Tomorrow
    View More
    Sponsored Content
    Partner Content
    The Industrialization of ESG Investment
    For institutional investors, ETFs can make meeting liquidity needs easier
    Gold: the most effective commodity investment
    2021 Investment Outlook | Investing Beyond the Pandemic: A Reset for Portfolios
    Ten ways retirement plan professionals add value to plan sponsors
    Gold: an efficient hedge
    View More
    E-MAIL NEWSLETTERS

    Sign up and get the best of News delivered straight to your email inbox, free of charge. Choose your news – we will deliver.

    Subscribe Today
    December 12, 2022 page one

    Get access to the news, research and analysis of events affecting the retirement and institutional money management businesses from a worldwide network of reporters and editors.

    Subscribe
    Connect With Us
    • RSS
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • LinkedIn

    Our Mission

    To consistently deliver news, research and analysis to the executives who manage the flow of funds in the institutional investment market.

    About Us

    Main Office
    685 Third Avenue
    Tenth Floor
    New York, NY 10017-4036

    Chicago Office
    130 E. Randolph St.
    Suite 3200
    Chicago, IL 60601

    Contact Us

    Careers at Crain

    About Pensions & Investments

     

    Advertising
    • Media Kit
    • P&I Content Solutions
    • P&I Careers | Post a Job
    • Reprints & Permissions
    Resources
    • Subscribe
    • Newsletters
    • FAQ
    • P&I Research Center
    • Site map
    • Staff Directory
    Legal
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Request
    Pensions & Investments
    Copyright © 1996-2023. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • Topics
      • Alternatives
      • Consultants
      • Coronavirus
      • Courts
      • Defined Contribution
      • ESG
      • ETFs
      • Face to Face
      • Hedge Funds
      • Industry Voices
      • Investing
      • Money Management
      • Opinion
      • Partner Content
      • Pension Funds
      • Private Equity
      • Real Estate
      • Russia-Ukraine War
      • SECURE 2.0
      • Special Reports
      • White Papers
    • Rankings & Awards
      • 1,000 Largest Retirement Plans
      • Top-Performing Managers
      • Largest Money Managers
      • DC Money Managers
      • DC Record Keepers
      • Largest Hedge Fund Managers
      • World's Largest Retirement Funds
      • Best Places to Work in Money Management
      • Excellence & Innovation Awards
      • WPS Innovation Awards
      • Eddy Awards
    • ETFs
      • Latest ETF News
      • Fund Screener
      • Education Center
      • Equities
      • Fixed Income
      • Commodities
      • Actively Managed
      • Alternatives
      • ESG Rated
    • ESG
      • Latest ESG News
      • The Institutional Investor’s Guide to ESG Investing
      • ESG Sustainability - Gaining Momentum
      • ESG Investing | Industry Brief
      • Innovation in ESG Investing
      • 2023 ESG Investing Conference
      • ESG Rated ETFs
    • Defined Contribution
      • Latest DC News
      • DC Money Manager Rankings
      • DC Record Keeper Rankings
      • Innovations in DC
      • Trends in DC: Focus on Retirement Income
      • 2023 Defined Contribution East Conference
    • Searches & Hires
      • Latest Searches & Hires News
      • Searches & Hires Database
      • RFPs
    • Research Center
      • The P&I Research Center
      • Earnings Tracker
      • Endowment Returns Tracker
      • Corporate Pension Contribution Tracker
      • Pension Fund Returns Tracker
      • Pension Risk Transfer Database
    • Careers
    • Events
      • View All Conferences
      • View All Webinars
      • 2023 ESG Investing
      • 2023 Private Markets