The merger between Icelandic pension funds Almenni and Lífsverk is now in operation, with the fund now operating under the name Almenni-Lífsverk.

The Competition Authority has now completed its investigation of the merger without intervention, following confirmation of the fund's articles of association by the Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs. The name was changed in accordance with the articles of association of the merged fund. The fund said the merger is progressing well and that it expects all merger-related projects to be completed in the first half of 2026. The fund aims to reduce any disruptions to the flow of information for its members during the process of integrating systems.

- Lærernes Pension, which provides pension schemes for teachers in Denmark, has announced that as of 2026, the limit for transferring small pensions (Klatpension) without a fee for its members has been raised from DKK 20,000 to DKK 25,000 due to new rules in the country.

The fund noted that a surprising number of Danes have one or more small pension schemes from a previous job that are not paid into, with figures from Insurance and Pension Denmark showing there are currently almost 800,000 small pensions. In many cases, these pensions are slowly being eroded by costs and can be difficult to track, easy to forget and expensive in the long run. This change in limit, the fund said, means more people can consolidate their pensions in one place for free and get a simpler overview of their total savings. Lærernes Pension's research found that some of its members would like to consolidate their pensions but were previously just above the limit for fee-free transfers.

- Sweden’s Skandia Cancer Society has awarded SEK 8.4m to Swedish cancer research in 2025.

Each year, the society, a fund within Skandia, donates the equivalent of 2 per cent of its value to cancer research. Since its inception in 1988, Skandia Cancer Society has donated nearly SEK 220m to Swedish cancer research. The contributions go to the Swedish Cancer Society, an independent organisation that finances and coordinates Swedish cancer research. This year, the Swedish Cancer Society collaborated with television network TV4 on the initiative Körslaget – Together against cancer, where well-known personalities lead choirs in a competition that combines music, strong stories and commitment to the fight against cancer. The final was broadcast last Saturday (10 January) and, as in previous years, Skandia president and CEO, Frans Lindelöw, participated and presented Skandia's contribution to the Swedish Cancer Society.

- Dutch construction sector pension fund, BpfBOUW, has announced that it has switched to new rules for pensions as of 1 January.

The fund assured savers that much remained the same, but there were several changes. The first change is that pensions now move in line with the economy and the result of investments. For those who haven’t retired, they will receive a pension pot, which moves with the economy and the results of the fund's investments. Meanwhile, for those who are already recipients of a pension, it can rise or fall once a year, but BpfBOUW are acting to prevent a reduction. The fund also has a buffer, also known as a solidarity reserve, where money is put aside for everyone who is part of the fund. This buffer exists to keep pensions as stable as possible if things go wrong. In addition to these two changes, BpfBOUW now has a survivor's pension if money is deposited for a pension, as the new regulations only regulate partners' and orphans' pension if money is deposited for a pension.

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