Several pension providers have announced new partnerships with investment platform providers, including the appointment of Mobius Life as the new investment platform for Smart Pension.

Following the successful implementation, Mobius will now provide the investment platform for Smart Pension's £5bn assets under management, with this appointment expected to help "drive" the next phase of the group's investment strategy.

In particular, the appointment is expected to focus on developing broader investment options for members, including meeting Smart’s 2040 net-zero target, and offering a wider range of public and private market investments and solutions.

“This partnership with Mobius will contribute to our growth strategy in the UK as well as bringing flexibility and enhancements to our market-leading investment proposition,” Smart Pension chief investment officer, Paul Bucksey, stated.

“This includes our 2040 net-zero target and our ambition to provide a well-diversified portfolio across public and private markets.

"We’re confident that in Mobius we’ve found the best partner that will bring enhanced capability for our members, and we look forward to working together."

In addition to this, Just Group has partnered with Invesco on the launch of a new retirement solution for advised clients, designed to help meet the changing needs of those approaching or already at retirement.

The appointment combines Invesco's model portfolio service and Just Group’s secure lifetime income solution to provide a differentiated retirement solution, offering advisers access to a robust and flexible proposition.

In particular, the new service is expected to provide uncorrelated guaranteed income whilst lowering the dependence on withdrawing income from a growth portfolio through retirement.

Sitting within existing pension drawdown arrangement, within the self-invested personal pensions (SIPP) wrapper, the solution is also designed to help advisers mitigate key retirement risks, including longevity, sequencing risk, and unknown life events within existing drawdown arrangements.

Commenting on the partnership, Just Group retail retirement income director, Kavi Myladoor, added: “Combining a guaranteed income producing asset such as that delivered by our SLI solution with growth model portfolios, within the SIPP drawdown wrapper, has been shown to increase the probability of delivering higher long-term portfolio value, higher income, and a more sustainable plan.”

In related news, the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) Access Pool has appointed Aviva Investors to manage a long-lease property mandate on behalf of the Lime Property Fund, following a review.

Access Joint Committee chairman, Mark Kemp-Gee, said he was “pleased” to report the appointment and the further establishment of the alternatives of the access authorities, highlighting the news as further demonstration of the pool's responsiveness to the needs and ambitions of partner LGPS funds.

Adding to this, Aviva Investors chief distribution officer, Jill Barber, stated: “We are delighted and honoured to partner with Access and for the Lime Property Fund to have been selected by the pool to manage its real estate long income mandate.

“I look forward to developing our relationship with the Access partner funds and helping them to deliver long-term investment outcomes on behalf of their members.”

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