V-FM: The Pensions Podcast

In this episode of V-FM pensions, hosts Darren and Nico chat to Fidelity International's James Monk. As well as finding out what value for money means to James and how he got into pensions, the wide-ranging discussions covers: Mansion House and local investing, and a general discussion about UK economic developments; Trump's crypto play; TPT's announcement that it is planning to introduce multi-employer CDC; a report from the SPP urging savers not to panic; and the pros and cons of life vs custody platforms. Listen to hear all this and more!

In this episode of V-FM Pensions, hosts Darren and Nico spend time reflecting on some of the key pension and investment topics of the moment, building on comments from guests over the last few episodes. We chat about Tony Blair's latest comments on climate change, the latest gossip about the next iteration of Mansion House and productive finance, assessing value for money by scratching the ITCH, next steps for collective defined contribution schemes, and a whole lot more... We also get an update on Nico's injury woes and Nico shares some amazing news!

In this episode of V-FM Pensions hosts Nico and Darren chat with the Chair of Pan Trustees, Steve Delo. Steve is a Trustee on many schemes and was chair of the People's Pension for 10 years from its inception (he had the pleasure of working closely with the podcast hosts for a good few years). We take a trip down memory lane discussing some historical pensions issues that schemes and trustees are still grappling with, focussing on the complexity of administration and data. We also chat about Steve's time at the People's Pension and some of the challenges in providing pensions at scale, the DWP announcement confirming its solution to deal with small pension pots, and the fiduciary challenges and lack of clear guidance on assessing and addressing climate risks in pension schemes. We also find out how Steve got into pensions and, of course, find out what value for money means to him. Enjoy!

In this episode of V-FM Pensions hosts Darren and Nico chat to Fulcrum's Head of Alternative Solutions Matt Roberts. Matt takes the podcast by storm and rips up the usual podcast format by kicking off with his views on what value for money means to him... We also cover tariffs, consolidation, zero cost equity investing, British Steel and... would you believe it... stamp collecting...

In this episode of V-FM Pensions, hosts Nico and Darren chat to NEST policy guru Philip Brown about all things pensions and all things policy. As well as talking about the 100th anniversary of the Great Gatsby and celebrating Arsenal's 3-0 win over Real Madrid, we chat pension freedoms, market volatility, the role of NEST, Hymans proposals for reform of the pension system, CDC and a whole load more! We also find out how Phil got into pensions and discuss what value for money means to him. Enjoy!

In this episode of V-FM Pensions, hosts Darren and Nico Chat to the PMI's new Chief Strategy Officer, Helen Forrest-Hall. Helen has been in the industry for 20 or so years and has just recently joined the PMI following a glittering career spanning time at The Pensions Regulator, the NAPF, and the DWP. Helen is a self-confessed pensions and policy geek, and we get stuck into topics such as pensions and housing, TPR's approach to supervising professional trustee companies, a recent talk by the Regulator at the PMI's excellent Master Trust and DC Symposium, glide paths and investment allocation, the latest report from the IFS, and a whole lot more. We also find out how Helen got into pensions and, of course, ask what value for money means to her.

In this episode of V-FM Pensions, hosts Darren and Nico pick up on some of the key topics from the last few episodes. Our one-one 'specials' have often been based around responses to consultations, but, in an evolution of the podcast format, once a month we're going to explore in more depth some of the issues raised on the regular podcast. So tune in and hear about the Spring Statement and the role of the Office for Budget Responsibility; systemic stewardship and fiduciary responsibility, including the role of pension funds in addressing society's big issues; and systems thinking in financial services. And we also discuss the recent acquisition of Barnett Waddingham by Howdens.

In this episode of V-FM Pensions hosts Nico and Darren chat to Money Alive co-founder Ian Beestin. Best known for his love of music and drumming - and his Thursday lunchtime drum quizzes during lockdown - Ian is helping to change the face of how pension schemes and providers communicate and engage with people in the digital age. As well as finding out how Ian got into Pensions and discussing what value for money means to him (hint: not Ryan Air...) we chat: AI and innovation in pensions communications, the need for engaging content and personalisation, The Pension Regulator's new innovation zone and what appears to be a deregulatory agenda, Torsten Bell's first big keynote speech including the continued drive for consolidation, and recent moves by USS to end reporting on emissions. Ian also flags a recent news story in Professional Pensions highlighting their 30th Anniversary. A big shout out to Jonathan Stapleton and the team in their anniversary year - many congratulations!

In this episode of V-FM Pensions, hosts Nico and Darren talk to Ruston Smith. Ruston was formerly Director of Pensions at Tesco and now holds several non-exec roles at pension funds, asset managers, private businesses and charities, and is the Chair of the Pensions Management Institute. We, of course, talk about how Ruston got into pensions and what value for money means to him. We also cover many of the big topics affecting the pensions industry and start by talking about International Women's day and Schroders' recent Women and Wealth Report. We chat a lot about pension fund investments and productive finance, fiduciary duty, and the ethics of pension fund investment in defence. And we also discuss Ruston's work on the Lifetime Savings Initiative, pensions adequacy and work Ruston has done with the government regulators and industry to improve transparency and simplify communication. And, in what must be a V-FM podcast first, we also touch on ‘the unkillables’ of the Patch Plant world and Ruston squeezes in a few pop star name checks. A great listen!

In this episode of V-FM Pensions, hosts Nico and Darren chat with accredited professional trustee, Paul Tinslay. Paul was previously a financial adviser before being a trustee and this comes through loud and clear in the podcast. As well as chatting about Paul's career and finding out what value for money means to him, we discuss Make My Money Matter's closure, Fidelity's approach to pension defaults, the challenge around pensions admin and its impact on dashboards, the 'four chapters of life' approach to modern careers and retirement, and People's Pension moving the vast majority of its assets away from State Street. Darren also goes off on a bit of a rant re a recent interaction with the DWP on behalf of a relative claiming the state pension (you might want to fast forward this bit....). A lot in this episode!

In this week's episode of V-FM Pensions, Darren and Nico chat to the ABI's Yvonne Braun and Aviva's Michele Golunska on the fringe of the ABI's 2025 Annual Conference. We spoke to Michele and Yvonne straight after an excellent panel session looking at savings adequacy and longevity, continuing a wide ranging and in depth discussion building on the topics discussed during the panel. We chatted about pensions policy, adequacy, productive finance, pensions dashboards, advice and guidance, technology and a whole lot more.... and, of course, we asked Yvonne and Michelle what value for money means to them.

In this episode of V-FM Pensions, hosts Darren and Nico chat to Benefits Consulting Leader at Gallagher, Mark Pemberthy. A self confessed 'regular' listener to the podcast, we've been trying to get Mark on to the pod for a little while and it was great to have a chat about all things pensions. As well as the staple topic of value for money, and, of course, finding out about how Mark got into pensions, we have a wide-ranging discussion about the pensions and savings landscape, auto enrolment, small pots and the future of regulation. Mark had clearly done his homework ahead of appearing on the podcast and came armed with news stories galore to demonstrate the complexity of our pensions and savings system.

In this episode of V-FM, hosts Darren and Nico chat to trustee extraordinaire and President of BESTrustees Alan Pickering. As well as Alan giving the podcast a scoop about the renaming of Yorkshire, we discuss: the importance of balancing the interaction between regulation, growth and consumer protection; the thorny questions of governance and conflicts of interest in the pensions industry; and Make My Money Matter's annual review of master trusts and climate change. We chat about Alan's amazing career and how he got into pensions and, of course, ask what value for money means to him. We also give a huge V-FM shout out to our first ever podcast guest, David Butcher, for the launch of his new mindfulness coaching programme. Congratulations David!

In this episode of VFM Pensions, hosts Darren and Nico chat to LCP partner and PASA Board member David Fairs. David has had a long and distinguished career in the pension industry, including a 5-year stint at The Pensions Regulator as Executive Director responsible for Regulatory Policy, Analysis and Advice. The pensions chat covers DB surplus extraction, Trump (again) and DEI/ESG, NEST taking a stake in IFM and People's Pension appointing itself as its own investment consultant. We also chat conflicts in the pensions industry, how David found the transition from the private to public sector, how David got into pensions, and a whole lot more.... including what value for money means to him. The podcast also has a scoop regarding David's future.... you'll have to listen to find out more!

In this episode of V-FM Pensions, hosts Darren and Nico chat to Chair of the Pensions Regulator Sarah Smart. In a wide-ranging episode we chat about a lot of things including diversity (spoiler: Trump was mentioned...), climate change and climate investing, the doomsday clock ticking ever closer to midnight, surplus extraction for defined benefit schemes and the role of trustees (which caused Darren to semi-rant about conflicts of interest), and the need for innovation and scope for the use of AI in pensions and pensions regulation. We chatted about how Sarah transitioned from the investment world to become an independent trustee, driven by a desire to make the pension system work better for people. We also, of course, discussed value for money and current regulatory initiatives in this area, with Sarah highlighting the need for.... [well... you'll need to listen to the podcast....]. And, following hot on the heels of last week's episode, we covered the need for balance between achieving scale through consolidation and allowing for innovation and competition in the pensions market. Lots in this one... enjoy!

In this episode of V-FM Pensions, hosts Darren and Nico chat to CEO of Smart UK, Jamie Fiveash. Jamie is a DC and master trust expert, is on the PLSA Board, and has had the pleasure of being Darren's boss, not once, but twice.... As it's our 101st episode (finally we've got a new numbering system...) we play a little game of Room 101... what will our guest and hosts consign to history (hint: first Brexit rant of the year from Darren)? Given the timing of the episode we had to talk about Trump.... but we spend most of our time chatting DC, productive finance, scale and consolidation, pensions reform and IHT. We find out how Jamie got into pensions and, of course, ask what value for money means to him.

In this episode of V-FM Pensions, hosts Nico and Darren chat to pensions lawyer extraordinaire, Robin Ellison. Robin is not shy with his views on policy and regulation and the podcast takes a whistle stop tour through many of the issues the pensions industry is grappling with currently. As well as welcoming the new pensions minister, we talk about Robin's foray into politics with the 'U' party, his views on regulatory policy and regulation including current initiatives to promote value for money and force consolidation, and a pension scheme investing in bitcoin. We also discuss climate change and the devastating fires in Los Angeles. We find out how Robin got into pensions and ask Robin what value for money means to him. Tune in to hear all this and a whole lot more! It's celebration time for VFM as this is the 100th episode of the podcast (including a number of specials that we have recorded over the past couple of years). Here's to the next 100 episodes!

A Happy New Year to all our listeners!! In this episode of V-FM Pensions, Darren and Nico kick off the year with an in depth discussion of the UK Government's consultation on reforms to the Defined Contribution pension market. This consultation is part of the Mansion House package of measures published on 14 November 2024. We chat through the main elements of the consultation including: the (flawed?) premise behind the Mansion House agenda; what scale really means and what we actually mean by a default; bulk transfers without consent; and the role of employers and advisers in choosing a pension scheme. This is our response to the Government's consultation. Fair to say it asks more questions than it answers, but we hope it helps and that others find it useful as they go about pulling together their own responses.

After a few weeks break due to illness, V-FM Pensions is back for a Christmas special where Darren and Nico chat about Pensions and the Mansions House reforms and look forward to 2025. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all our listeners. Here's to a fantastic 2025!

In this episode of V-FM pensions, hosts Nico and Darren chat to Broadstone's Richard Sweetman. Due to illness, publication of this episode has been delayed, but not to worry as you can see how Richard's Mansion House predictions match up to what Rachel Reeve's announced during her maiden Mansion House speech. We also discuss a Private Eye Article on the Budget, money and inflation in ancient Rome, pre-Budget tax speculation that never materialised, and the recent Lord Mayor's speech which called for more investment by pension funds into the UK.