Pension Capital Strategies (PCS), the company set up as a member of the Jardine Lloyd Thompson Group, offering a new approach to managing corporate pension obligations, has reached a joint working agreement with Numis Securities Limited (Numis), the City based independent investment banking and stock broking business, to provide joint advisory support to companies and investors in companies with significant pension obligations.
The financial implications of Defined Benefit pension deficits are unclear. The major investment banks have competed over briefs to design sophisticated solutions to better manage risk for the largest schemes in excess of 1 billion. The vast majority of schemes in the UK are considerably smaller and sponsoring employers have not been so fortunate in being able to find co-ordinated, commercial and creative advice on how to best deal with the complicated issues.
PCS was launched in April to service a gap in the market, offering coordinated advisory service to companies and investors in companies with significant pension obligations. PCS’s partnership with Numis will be used to broaden its corporate finance offering to this market, with particular focus on equity and capital markets.
“We are really looking forward to working with Numis on this new proposition,” says Peter Redhead, Managing Director, PCS. “PCS has been launched to offer a one stop, coordinated advisory service to companies and investors in those companies with significant pension obligations typically under 1 billion and the relationship with Numis means that our offering is unique in the breadth from which we can look to address the corporate DB pension issue. This announcement follows the recent key appointment of Charles Cowling to PCS so we are now perfectly placed to bring badly needed practical advice and solutions.”
“Numis are delighted to be working with PCS,” says Oliver Hemsley, CEO of Numis Corporation Plc.”We feel there is great synergy between both companies. Jardine Lloyd Thompson has excellent market knowledge, expertise and credibility in the pension and benefits market place. Numis, through its conception and formation of Paternoster Limited (a newly incorporated insurance group formed to assume liabilities for closed end final salary pension schemes) is in an excellent position to work with PCS to provide pension solutions for UK companies. Defined Benefit pensions schemes are increasingly becoming a barrier to corporate transactions and restructuring, a challenge to long term financial planning and a threat to corporate survival. PCS will be working with clients in seeking to structure solutions to these issues.”