Press release
Marks & Spencer Pension Trust Selects Northern Trust for Asset Servicing Solutions
Supporting One of the UK’s Top 25 Largest Corporate Pension Schemes’ Focus on Governance, Investment Efficiency and Sustainability LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
About this update from Northern Trust Corporation
[{"type":"text","content":"\nSupporting One of the UK’s Top 25 Largest Corporate Pension Schemes’ Focus on Governance, Investment Efficiency and Sustainability\n\n LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--\nNorthern Trust (Nasdaq: NTRS) today announced it has been selected by Marks & Spencer Pension Trust (M&SPT) in the United Kingdom (UK) to provide a range of asset servicing solutions to the M&S Pension Scheme, a defined benefit (DB) pension scheme of which M&SPT is trustee.\n\nWith £11 billion of assets (as at 31 March 2020), the M&S Pension Scheme is one of the country’s 25 largest corporate pension schemes (source: Pension Funds and their Advisers 2019/20 edition).\n\nNorthern Trust will provide global custody, financial reporting and analytical services to support M&SPT’s oversight and administration of its investment strategy, across its range of traditional, insurance and alternative investments.\n\nThese solutions include specialist fund administration and analytics for M&SPT’s private market portfolio, as well as delivering heightened transparency over its environmental social and governance (ESG) risk exposures through Northern Trust’s ESG Insights service.\n\nSimon Lee, head of M&SPT and chief investment officer, said: “We require an asset servicing provider able to support the requirements of our broad, complex portfolio of investments and adapt to the scheme’s requirements as we progress through the de-risking journey. By appointing Northern Trust, we knew we were selecting a team and institution with the track record, technical expertise and long-term commitment to do that.”\n\nMark Austin, head of UK, Institutional Investor Group at Northern Trust, said: “As a committed partner to the retirement industry, we are delighted to support M&SPT in the stewardship of its assets. Northern Trust is focused on helping UK pensions meet the challenges of the market – whether, for example, by enabling transparency over investments, or supporting efforts to de-risk. Ultimately, we share the same objectives – of helping achieve good retirement outcomes for members.”\n\nNorthern Trust’s Institutional Investor Group provides services to almost 300 UK pension funds with collectively more than US$884 billion (as at 30 June 2020) in assets under custody. Clients serviced include Defined Contribution master trusts, DB corporate schemes and funds of the UK Local Government Pen...