A participant who was not awarded a contract in the Swedish Fund Selection Agency’s (FTN) procurement of actively managed global equity funds has requested a court review, temporarily halting agreements with the winning entities and potentially delaying availability to pension savers.

The application for judicial review was submitted to the Administrative Court in Stockholm by an individual tender that participated in the procurement and did not win.

As a review has been requested, the signing agreements with the selected funds in the procurement are paused until the Administrative Court has examined the case and made its decision.

The pause impacts the entities that won the tenders as their entry onto the Swedish premium pension fund platform is delayed. Meanwhile, for pension savers, access to the newly procured funds may be delayed compared to the original timetable.

In response to the review, FTN said that its mandate is to procure funds within the premium pension system in accordance with the legislation adopted by the Swedish parliament (Riksdag).

It also explained that all tenders in the current procurement of actively managed global funds have been evaluated according to the same model and criteria.

Overall, FTN’s Board considers that the procurement has been conducted in a correct and legally secure manner, but welcomed the fact that the application of the regulations can now be reviewed by the courts.

Commenting on the review, FTN chair, Mats Dillén, said: “It is important for legal certainty that affected tenderers can request a review of public sector decisions.

"We will submit the documents requested by the Administrative Court in order to enable a correct and swift review. Our assessment is that the procurement has been conducted in accordance with the applicable legislation and regulations.”

After the Administrative Court makes a decision, FTN confirmed it will provide further information about what this means for the continued timetable for introducing the procured funds.

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