If you're a trustee of a DB scheme in surplus, you're probably being cautious about distribution. That's understandable - it's safer to wait, see what others do, avoid being first-movers. But here's the question: Are you being appropriately cautious because you have a robust framework telling you to wait? Or are you defaulting to inaction because you lack  a framework to make confident decisions? There's a crucial difference. Use this checklist to assess which camp you're in.

Helping a new entrant to gain insight, manage risk and drive marketability for a new product. Background   Boutique asset manager looking to launch a new alternatives investment product providing capital direct-to-consumer.  Transformational business model intending to disrupt an established industry.  Capital to be supplied by institutional investors, including UK pension funds in exchange for income and capital returns.   Early engagement occured ahead of the launch of the

The recently announced agreement for Aberdeen to take over the sponsorship of the DB pensions of Stagecoach [1] marks an evolution in the UK pension risk transfer market. Traditional fiduciary management focuses on setting, managing and evolving investment strategies for DB schemes, whilst OCIO arrangements go further by absorbing operational responsibilities which can include the integration of legacy investment staff into the OCIO's operations. But in both of these cases t

How distributable is your scheme's current DB surplus? This interactive tool helps to illuminate this

"Isn't Surplus Management the same as Journey Planning - why do anything different?"  As a pioneer of the Journey Planning approach...

Why is covenant central to managing DB pension surpluses? Find out more in this post

EXCLUSIVE - How much will DB schemes release in surplus? Our view differs from the UK Government- we explain here why.

EXCLUSIVE - How should DB scheme trustees and sponsors think about the trade offs between buyout and run-on endgames?

EXCLUSIVE - White paper introducing a dynamic and strategic Surplus Management Framework to help Trustees and Sponsor navigate the balance between asset distribution and member security.

A discussion of the trends, potential benefits and drawbacks of consolidation in UK pensions

Traditionally, UK DC pension schemes have focused on investing in daily-traded assets like listed equities and bonds. This focus limited...

Over the years I have worked closely with pension fund chairs and trustee boards in a wide range of situations - from the best of times...

The Financial Times (FT) recently published an article highlighting that 8 large US pension plans with assets totalling circa $1.5trn are...

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In 2023, the UK Government announced its intention to act to unlock barriers to investment in productive private assets such as UK...