LV= adds new funds to external pension offering

Retirement specialist LV= has enhanced the number of funds available through its pensions range, by adding 15 new managed funds to its external fund link offering - 12 of these from three investment management groups new to the LV= pensions platform.

JPMorgan Asset Management, Martin Currie and M&G Investments now link to the LV= pensions platform, offering financial advisers more choice than ever for their clients looking to maximise their income in retirement.

Ray Chinn, Head of Pensions at LV=, said: "The addition of these funds is another exciting chapter in the development of the pensions platform, and offers fantastic choice to financial advisers who are looking for a highly attractive range of investment choices. Our usual fund selection process has been enhanced in recent months with assistance from our LV= Asset Management team - specifically Tom Caddick and his Multi Manager team who have helped to identify funds that demonstrate strength and consistency."

Specific funds added to the pensions platform, based on inputs from the LVAM Multi Manager team, are as follows:

JPMorgan Europe Dynamic ex UK Fund, managed by Jon Ingram and John Baker;
Martin Currie North American Fund, managed by Tom Walker and David Forsyth;
Martin Currie Asia Pacific Fund, managed by Jason McCay and Richard Evans;
M&G Corporate Bond Fund, managed by Richard Woolnough;
M&G Global Basics Fund, managed by Graham French;
M&G Recovery Fund, managed by Tom Dobell;
Fidelity MoneyBuilder Income Fund, managed by Ian Spreadbury;
Schroder US Small & Mid Cap Fund, managed by Jenny Jones;
Jupiter Japan Income Fund, managed by Simon Somerville.

Ray Chinn added: "It's great to be able to offer these wider choices both in terms of funds and management groups. Over the coming weeks we will be announcing further improvements in our support to financial advisers to help them make appropriate investment choices through our Transitions Retirement Plan wrapper."

Mike Parsons, Head of UK Retail Distribution at JPMorgan Asset Management, said: "We too believe in offering our investors as wide a range of investment choice as possible and this is particularly important when building a pension portfolio so we're delighted to be linking up with LV=. The JPM Europe Dynamic ex UK Fund has consistently outperformed and will sit well in any portfolio over the medium to long term."

Andy Sowerby, Managing director of marketing, distribution and product management at Martin Currie, commented: "This is an important partnership for Martin Currie and we are looking forward to working with LV= and their clients. Our funds are gaining strong support from across the intermediary market and we are delighted to have now been added across the entire LV= pension range."

Andrew Watson, M&G's Partnerships Director, said: "This is the first time that M&G funds have been selected for the LV= pensions platform. We are delighted that LV=, in consultation with its asset management multi manager team, has chosen three of our award winning funds. These funds have highly regarded managers, who have a proven track record for delivering consistent and outstanding performance for financial advisers and their clients."