Round up - August 18

Trustees warned on value of buy-outs

Financial Times

Pension scheme trustees wanting to offload liabilities through insured buyouts need to be wary of what they are paying for and whether it represents value for money, Mercer says. The consultant firm also warned pension schemes to avoid "elephant traps" such as overpaying for risk reduction, remaining over-exposed to future risks and missing market opportunities.

PPF to publish its voting records

Financial Times

The UK’s Pension Protection Fund is to start publishing its UK voting records in an attempt to highlight its adherence to environmental, social and governance principles.

Wall St duo bring in new lending systems

Financial Times

Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs are responding to the credit crunch with new systems that use the market’s view of their own creditworthiness as a basis for lending decisions.

Business gloomy amid expectations of decline

Financial Times

British business are preparing for an economic slowdown with three new surveys today showing widening expectations that business prospects for the coming year are dimming.

A survey by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales says confidence is now at its weakest point in all but two UK regions since the survey began in 2003.