German bank Berenberg is going into a cooperative arrangement around pensions consulting with the firm Lurse Deutsche Pensions Treuhand.

A statement on Berenberg’s website confirmed the move, saying that the pair aimed to form a provider of outsourced chief investment officer (OCIO) solutions.

The primary focus of the solutions will be the development, implementation, and administration of investment strategies for company pension schemes within Germany.

Commenting, Lurse manager, Dr. Stefan Birkel, said: "Berenberg Investment Consulting has a technological advisory platform that we believe is unique in Germany. The Berenberg SAA & ALM Innovation Hub enables dashboard-based interaction with the investor.

"Highly complex amounts of data are processed in the shortest possible time and transparent analyses and simulations of investments and obligations are provided. The cooperation will enable Lurse customers to access this technology as well as Berenberg's expertise in the preparation of SAA and ALM studies in the future."

It is understood that Berenberg will contribute its expertise in optimising tailor-made investment strategies in the context of strategic asset allocation (SAA) and asset liability management (ALM), alongside its implementation in asset management as part of the strategic partnership.

Meanwhile, Lurse will concentrate on the provision and administration of CTA fiduciary solutions (contractual trust arrangement).

The CTA is a trust structure widely used in Germany for the internal financing of pension obligations. In addition to securing pension entitlements in the event of the insolvency of the sponsor company and the provision and segregation of appropriate funding for the provision of future pension benefits, companies often use it to help with accounting policy considerations.

Berenberg head of investment consulting, Michael Kreibich, said: “The trend towards outsourcing the management of the entire investment to an external OCIO provider has increased significantly among German occupational pension scheme investors in recent years. Together with Lurse, we are now creating an offering that meets the highest possible quality standards in every sub-segment of the value chain.”

He added: “Lurse is one of the technology leaders in Germany in the field of CTA trusteeship and, with over 20 years of experience in this business segment, its medium-sized organisational structure and a highly specialised offering, represents a perfect complement to our solutions at Berenberg Investment Consulting.”

---