The €285m pension fund for the Caribbean Netherlands has left Syntrus Achmea Pensioenbeheer for Rijswijk-based pensions provider AGH.
Harald Linkels, chairman of the scheme for civil servants, care staff and teachers in Bonaire, Sint-Eustatius and Saba, said his relatively small and “exotic” pension fund felt more comfortable with a smaller provider.
“We had a good relationship with Syntrus Achmea, but we noticed they focused on standardisation,” he said.
“At AGH, we are able to collect the contribution through the pension benefits.”
According to the chairman, the pension fund has also decided to leave asset manager Achmea Investment Management, formerly Syntrus Achmea Asset Management, as of 1 July.
“Because we invest in US dollars and discount our liabilities against the dollar swap curve, we prefer a dollar-focused asset manager,” Linkels said.
He said the pension fund was negotiating with four players, and that Achmea had declined to participate in the tender.
In other news, the €300m pension fund of merchant bank NIBC has appointed NN Investment Partners as its fiduciary asset manager.
NN IP is to provide strategic advice, liability-driven investment, operational balance management and management reporting.
According to the NIBC scheme, it considered NN IP as a “sparring partner”, tasked with assisting the scheme’s board in seeking the best investment strategy, as well as implementation.
Previously, the pension fund contracted out its asset management – in a passive mandate – to BlackRock, investing in the manager’s funds whilst almost fully following the index.
Lastly, De Fracties, the €116m company scheme of Dutch food-ingredient company Loder Croklaan, has switched pensions provider AZL for Dion Pensions Services in Hardenberg, which focuses on small and medium-sized pension funds.
De Fracties, a scheme with almost 750 participants and pensioners, declined to comment on the switch-over.
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