ING RE regrets loss of North Yorkshire County Council

ING Real Estate Select said it regrets its dismissal by North Yorkshire County Council pension scheme following the fund manager's decision to relocate to the Netherlands. 'We are sorry that the North Yorkshire County Council pension scheme has come to this decision at a moment that we believe our clients will benefit from the recovery of global real estate markets,' said Jan Meulenbelt, Global Head ING Real Estate Select.

He said the fund manager was working on a joint solution which would take into account the pension fund's long-term responsibilities to its participants and the position of ING Select.

Meulenbelt acknowledged that a number of changes had taken place at ING Select's headquarters, but said these would not have any impact on its European business. 'We remain committed to further growth of our multi-manager business,' he said, pointing to the recent appointment of a new Portfolio Manager, Francijn de Ruijter.

The decision to move the Select business to the Netherlands led to the resignation of CEO Nick Cooper whom Meulenbelt has since replaced.

ING Select's mandate from the UK pension fund dates from May 2008. It has not yet invested any of the funds in an attempt to protect the pension fund from disappointing results on global real estate markets.