Carolyn Bandel
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Venice mulls pension money for local infrastructure
ITALY – The local government of the Veneto region in the North-East of Italy is considering using the resources of its local pension funds to finance regional infrastructure projects.
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APG pushes forward to meet infrastructure target
NETHERLANDS – APG, the asset manager of the €193bn ABP pension fund, is pushing forward to meet its infrastructure investment target of €4.5bn for 2009, even though opportunities are now drying up in the asset class.
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Sources confirm Tesco/USS real estate deal
UK – Sources have confirmed the £30bn (€38bn) Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS), the second-largest pension scheme in the UK, is set to purchase a number of UK supermarket chain Tesco’s largest stores.
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US giant huddles up to London
UK – Mark Wood, managing director of US pension fund giant TIAA-CREF’s global real estate business, has revealed the newly-launched London office is an attempt to “make sure we are as close to the market as we can be.”
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TIAA-CREF hunts real estate via London office
US/UK – The New York-based Teachers Insurance and Annuities Association-College Retirement Equities Fund (TIAA-CREF), the second largest retirement plan in the US with assets of $420bn (€281bn), has launched its first overseas office in London.
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Cost of fraud triples for Philips fund
NETHERLANDS – The €13.4bn Dutch pension fund of electronics major Philips has executed several sequestrations in relation to its involvement in the recent property fraud, which is now estimated to have cost the fund €150m.
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ABP joint venture spends €2.7bn in shopping spree
NETHERLANDS – The €205bn Dutch pension fund ABP today revealed it now owns Scandinavia’s largest shopping centre owner and developer, Steen & Strøm, after buying the firm in a joint venture for NOK21.9bn (€2.7bn).
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APG reshuffles Asian real estate team
NETHERLANDS – Dutch APG Investments, the wholly-owned division of ABP created to manage the assets and administration of the pension fund, has reshuffled its Asian real estate team.
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Van der Ende takes the CIO chair
NETHERLANDS – Johan van der Ende, currently at the helm of strategy and structured investments at PGGM, has been promoted to chief investment officer.
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Dutch transport funds team up to buy real estate
NETHERLANDS – The €12bn Dutch railway pension fund (SPF) and the €2bn public transport pension fund (SPOV) have, together with Generali Real Estate, bought an €80m Dutch shopping centre project.
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Finnish fund in quest for UK real estate
FINLAND – A Finnish pension fund is looking for managers for a £150m (€189.5m) UK real estate mandate, using IPE Quest.
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Finnish VER to boost alternatives
FINLAND – The €11.53bn Finnish first pillar Valtion Eläkerahasto (VER) pension scheme, is planning to increase its exposure to alternative investments to 10%.
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Norway pension fund allocates 5% to real estate
NORWAY – Europe’s largest pension fund, the NOK2136bn (€267bn)Norwegian Government Pension Fund – Global, has said it will switch 5%of its asset to real estate, while moving more money into emerging markets.
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M&S to 'pre-fund' scheme with more property
UK – British retailer Marks & Spencer (M&S) today announcedit will top up its property-backed partnership with its £5.2bn(€6.76bn) UK pension fund with another £400m.
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Philips fund ups real estate sale as experts mull liability
NETHERLANDS – The €14.6bn Dutch pension fund of electronics giantPhilips has further dismantled its real estate portfolio, a processinitiated following an investigation started into the alleged realtyfraud within the fund.
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Kåpan eyes more real estate after poor year
SWEDEN – The SEK32.7bn (€3.5bn) Kåpan Pensioner scheme forgovernment employees booked a return of 2.1% for 2007, and now plans toincrease its real estate allocation to 10%.
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German doctors mull infrastructure
GERMANY – The €9bn Nordrheinische Ärzteversorgung (NAEV), the German pension fund for doctors in the North Rhine region, is contemplating a move into infrastructure investments.
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Philips scheme dismantles real estate portfolio
NETHERLANDS – The besieged €14.6bn pension scheme of Dutch electronics major Philips has sold around 15% of its real estate holdings to Dutch real estate investment fund Vesteda.
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BNL fund to outsource real estate
ITALY – The €970m pension fund of the Italian Banca Nazionale del Lavoro (BNL) is looking to outsource the management of its real estate portfolio.
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Blue Sky hires successor to Satumalaij
NETHERLANDS – Blue Sky Group, the manager of Dutch airline KLM’s pension fund assets, has appointed Hidde Frequin as its new real estate fund manager real estate. Succeeding Raymond Satumalaij, who resigned in March to join fund manage...