U.K. Pension Fund Mandates Northern Trust Through LGPS Framework

The U.K.’s Devon County Council £3 billion pension fund has used the National LGPS Global Custodian Framework to select Northern Trust to provide global custody and securities lending beginning September 1, 2014.
By Jake Safane(2147484770)
The U.K.’s Devon County Council £3 billion pension fund has used the National LGPS Global Custodian Framework to select Northern Trust to provide global custody and securities lending beginning September 1, 2014.

Northern Trust will replace J.P. Morgan as the fund’s global custodian, and the contract is set for five years, with the option to extend it for another two.

Mark Gayler, assistant country treasurer at Devon County Council notes that the decision to use Northern Trust was made partly on price but also because the custodian ensured the offering “was bespoke to our requirements,” he says. “Northern Trust’s ability to provide high-quality tailored solutions to meet our specific requirements, combined with their leading expertise across the local government pension scheme (LGPS) sector, were key factors in their appointment. In addition, Northern Trust’s strong securities lending capabilities supported our objectives to maximize our investment portfolio.”

Penelope Biggs, head of Institutional Investor Group for Europe, Middle East and Africa, at Northern Trust, says: “Through our Institutional Governance Services group and dedicated LGPS team we continue to look for innovative ways to invest in the depth and sophistication of services we can offer pension funds faced with increasingly complex investment and administration challenges, and in an evolving regulatory landscape.”

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