- Danish pension company AP Pension has commercially launched AP FlexPension.

The launch is the result of several years of development work and analysis in which Danes, businesses and partners have expressed a desire for flexibility and more options and solutions that suit modern working life. AP FlexPension offers customers the opportunity to tailor their pension scheme to their individual needs. This includes a contribution flex option, allowing employees to temporarily reduce their pension contributions in exchange for a higher salary, all while maintaining their insurance coverage. Additionally, there is a payment flex option, which enables individuals to receive either full or partial payments, such as in the event of reduced working hours or gradual retirement. AP FlexPension also offers savings flex, which is the option to transfer parts of your savings to selected providers and investment platforms and insurance flex, an extended option to split insurance and savings for a more tailored solution. The pension company has also launched AP Basis, a primarily passively managed investment solution with an expected annual percentage rate of around 0.4 per cent. AP Pension will sign up new customers directly to AP FlexPension.

- Skandia, the Swedish pension company, has invested SEK 300m in the International Agricultural Fund (IFAD) by participating in an issue of a SEK 750m sustainable bond.

Skandia’s investment is the largest in the issue and is its third investment in IFAD. The investment is being made alongside Sweden’s third national fund, AP3, and the Legal, Financial and Administrative Services Agency. The bond is issued under IFAD's Sustainable Development Finance Framework, and the capital will be used for development projects that strengthen small-scale farmers in developing countries. The focus of the investment is to increase productivity in rural areas, improve food security and strengthen resilience to climate and economic shocks. Skandia's investment is aligned with its ambition to contribute to sustainable social development and invest its customers' capital responsibly with a focus on long-term value creation.

- The number of vocational rehabilitation applications received by Finnish earnings-related pension provider Ilmarinen has continued to decrease.

The provider reported that, in 2025, it received 2,510 new applications for vocational rehabilitation, which was 7 per cent fewer than in the previous year. Ilmarinen explained that the reason for the decrease in recent years includes the increased use of partial sickness allowance to support a return to work and the increasing popularity of work trials offered by occupational health care services. Ilmarinen granted rehabilitation to an average of 43 per cent of applicants, and rehabilitation decisions were made within 11 days on average. The provider’s processing times for rehabilitation and disability pension applications were faster than the average processing time in the employment pension sector. Of those who participated in rehabilitation, 80 per cent returned to work or became job seekers. Ilmarinen explained that rehabilitation was most successful when the underlying cause was a musculoskeletal disorder and when the person was employed when they applied for rehabilitation. When mental health issues are the underlying cause, rehabilitation to return to work was more challenging. Ilmarinen has introduced a new customer-oriented rehabilitation service concept.

- Dutch pension fund ABP and its administrator APG have been awarded four stars from the Golden Ear Foundation.

The research by the Golden Ear Foundation showed that, together with APG, ABP took further steps to improve the customer experience in 2025 and of the 100 points to be achieved, it scored 86, leading to a four-star rating. The report also showed that ABP has continued to invest in customer contact and contained several practical recommendations that the fund intends to implement this year. The fund said that the award is “valuable” for ABP and APG, as after the transition to the new Dutch system, the Golden Ear is expected to become a “hygiene factor”, even for pension funds and administrators that are not yet participating. ABP communications policy advisor, Stephan Vollenbroek, said: “Maintaining such a score in these turbulent times is an achievement in itself and the rating encourages us to continue in this vein and strive for a five-star rating.”

- Finnish earnings-related pension provider Varma has launched a development project in the Siberia Business Centre located in the Finlayson area. 

The project covers the renovation and refurbishment of the street level and the entrances leading to it. Part of the ground floor will also be renovated, and a new staircase connection to the street level will be built through the media tunnel under Satakunnankatu. The office spaces on the upper floors will remain as they are. The site phase, which will begin in August 2026, will include renovation and the renewal of building technology systems. The Siberia Business Centre will be closed for the duration of the construction phase, which is expected to last until the end of May 2027. The opening of the renewed Siberia Business Centre will be celebrated in the summer of 2027.

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