Some 17 UK workplace pension providers have signed up to the Mansion House Accord. However, Scottish Widows – one of the original signatories of the Mansion House Compact – chose not to sign up for the new initiative.
The Accord is asking pension providers to commit 10% of their default funds to private markets, with 5% of the total committed to UK assets.
The initiative was signed by all Mansion House Compact signatories apart from Scottish Widows, with progress under the compact counting towards meeting the Accord’s new goals.
While not signing up to the initiative, Scottish Widows said it was “great” to see the government and the industry focusing on further private investment into the UK.
A spokesperson for Scottish Widows said: “We’ve announced plans to launch a long-term asset fund [LTAF], as part of our ongoing commitment to providing innovative investment solutions for customers so that our customers have the option to invest further in private markets.
“We remain committed to the original Mansion House Compact target of investing 5% of our default funds in unlisted equities by 2030.”
Scottish Widows has £230bn (€273bn) in assets under administration, and of the c£165bn under discretionary influence it invests £35.3bn (c21.5%) in the UK.
The provider also has £11.6bn of its £17.6bn (65%) ‘shareholders assets’ invested in the UK, including a £5.6bn UK loan portfolio funding social housing, infrastructure and higher education.
Meanwhile, £5.6bn of its £72bn (7.6%) default pension investment is invested in UK equities.
Scottish Widows has said it will provide details on further investment into innovative UK businesses later this year.
Read the digital edition of IPE’s latest magazine
No comments yet