What does the investment services team do?
Our investment team provides a central service, covering clients across the UK. The team is mainly based in Leeds, but we’re also building up a presence in Basingstoke.
We provide investment advice to pension scheme trustees, which normally starts with a review of the scheme’s strategy and current investments. For many of our clients we also run a monitoring service, reporting on any developments in the scheme’s investments and how they perform.
If, as a result of strategic review or monitoring work, we advise the trustees to change their investments, we often guide them through a selection exercise. This involves shortlisting and reviewing eligible funds in detail before they are chosen. We may also carry out financial modelling when proposing a target asset allocation that will meet the trustees’ risk and return targets.
Once the changes are agreed, our specialist asset transitions team takes over and project manages the activity on behalf of the scheme, while minimising any risks involved.
Research is an important dimension of investment services. First Actuarial researches all the major asset classes. This involves meeting investment managers on a regular basis to elicit new fund and market information.