- Kas Bank has developed its end-to-end cost transparency solution for defined contribution pension schemes to assist with the incoming chairs statement.

The development will help with the new regulatory requirement for trustees to report on cost and charges to determine the value for money for members. The end-to-end solution collects and interprets data of behalf of the scheme, giving trustees a full view of costs in pounds. The data, displayed via a dashboard, factors in real contribution growth, salary increases and expected investment returns. The pots and costs can be segmented into various cost categories as an aide for trustees.

- Hymans Robertson has launched a new segment identifier tool in order to help trustees prepare for tougher regulatory demands.

The tool will help schemes understand what would be expected of them in order to fulfil the The Pension Regultor’s (TPR) new approach, using the principles of its Annual Funding Statement. It will assess four criteria including; employer covenant, recovery plan length, strength of funding target and scheme maturity to work out which is most appropriate for the scheme. According to the consultancy, the results will then inform schemes what action it needs to take regarding covenant, investment strategy or funding.

- The cross industry GMP Equalisation Working Group (GMPEWG) has formed five sub-committees to drive progress.

The sub-committees, working to deliver best practice guidelines, will consider; methodology considerations and implementation; impacted transactions such as transfers out and trivial communications; data gaps and good practice rectification; tax implications; and reconciliation and rectification. GMPEWG, chaired by Pensions Administration Standards Association’s Geraldine Brassett, will help schemes with their respective responsibility by providing “practical and pragmatic help to the industry”.

- Nest has partnered with RepRisk and Sustainalytics in order to further integrate environmental, societal and governance (ESG) factors into its investment strategy.

Nest will be able to utilise live databases of ESG data, allowing it to spot risks and screen out certain assets. Furthermore, it will be able to monitor market news, assessing companies’ reputation in order to inform engagement and voting decisions. The databases will be fully integrated into the master trust’s decision making process, giving it an holistic view of companies alongside more traditional investment risk factors.

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