EUROPE - RBS expects Greece will experience a hard default this December in a move it says will cause "violent contagion" in global markets.

US - The Fresno County Employees' Retirement Association (FCERA) will consider selling Treasury Inflation Protected Securities to take advantage of the high prices resulting from recent market volatility.

CANADA/UK - The Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System (OMERS) has closed on its previously announced acquisition of V.Group for $520m.

DENMARK - Industriens Pensionsforsikring, the Danish administrator for the labour market pension scheme, has hired State Street to provide analytics on its DKK5.5bn ($1bn) private equity portfolio.

US - The Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board plans to issue requests for proposals for managers to run its $150bn in external assets currently managed by BlackRock.

US - Brian Guthrie has been bumped up to the executive director role of the $105bn Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS).

US - J.P. Morgan Asset Management has hired James Gearin as chief operating officer of its retirement plan services business.

AUSTRALIA - Prime minister Julia Gillard today rejected the idea of starting a sovereign wealth fund calling superannuation funds themselves "our trillion dollar sovereign wealth fund, but with market benefits".

NETHERLANDS - Dutch asset manager Robeco's heavy emphasis on growing its institutional business has paid off with nearly half of the €4.9bn ($7bn) inflows seen in the first half of the year coming from institutional mandates, CEO Roderick Munsters said....

NORWAY - EDB ErgoGroup ASA has agreed to costs totalling some NOK9m ($1.7m) per year to settle a pension dispute with employee unions over its decision to transfer some staffers from a defined benefit to a defined contribution plan.