The Cost Transparency Initiative (CTI) – the body that will implement the findings of the Institutional Disclosure Working Group (IDWG) – has unveiled a range of industry figures as members of its board.
The new members of the board are Jenny Condron of the Association of Consulting Actuaries, Joe Dabrowski of the Pensions & Lifetime Savings Association, Jason Fletcher of LGPS Central Limited, Adam Henley of JP Morgan AM, Jeff Houston, secretary to the LGPS Advisory Board, Jane Ivinson of Insight Investment, Jonathan Lipkin of the Investment Association, Gurpreet Manku of the British Private Equity & Venture Capital Association, Angela Roberts of the Financial Services Consumer Panel and Robert Waugh of the RBS Pension Fund.
In addition, representatives from the Department for Work and Pensions, Financial Conduct Authority, The Pensions Regulator and the Trade Union Congress will also be Board observers, and former Chair of the IDWG Dr Chris Sier will act as a Board adviser.
In November 2018 the CTI was launched and became the organisation taking forward the work of the IDWG. It will run a pilot phase to test the new cost transparency templates and supporting technical and communications materials until January 2019.
Following the pilot, it will roll-out the templates to the asset management and pensions industries to encourage fully transparent and standardised cost and charge information for institutional investors.
The CTI aims to enable investors to compare charges between providers, give them a clear expectation of the disclosure they can expect, and ultimately deliver better value for money for members and employers.
Following the group’s launch, up to 20 participants – both providers and investors – have now been selected to take part in a pilot phase of the templates. The pilot, which is due to conclude in March 2019, will help the group fine tune the templates before opening them up for wider use throughout the industry.
Cost Transparency Initiative chair Mel Duffield says:“The Board has diverse representation from stakeholders across the industry that will be involved with the templates to ensure all perspectives are represented. Each of the new members brings an important level of experience to the group which will help to ensure that this project is a success going forwards into 2019 and beyond. I would like to thank each of them for committing to the programme of work and look forward to working closely with each and every one of them.
“With the appointment of the Board and the new templates now being actively tested across the industry, I am confident we are making good progress towards formally launching the new templates in the Spring which, once adopted, will make it easier for trustees to scrutinise and challenge costs and deliver value for money.”
Investment Association chief executive Chris Cummings says: “We look forward to working closely with the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association, Local Government Pension Scheme Advisory Board and other partners to build on the progress of the Institutional Disclosure Working Group (IDWG). The new Initiative will deliver the IDWG framework, which will enable costs and charges to be reported in a clear and consistent manner for institutional investors.”