This research examines the perception that the AIM market is riskier than the Official List market in comparable stocks. The empirical analysis uses high frequency data for January 2000 to December 2004 on 533 AIM stocks and 264 comparable Official List stocks. Risk is measured in a variety of...

Medieval bishops condemned and restricted the sale of corrodies (a type of annuity), partly on the grounds of their perceived unprofitability. The available data on the profitability of corrodies is limited and little analysed, and the episcopal condemnation of corrodies has been adopted by...

Unless a direct hedge is available, cross hedging must be used. In such circumstances portfolio theory implies that a composite hedge (the use of two or more hedging instruments to hedge a single spot position) will be beneficial. Surprisingly, the study and use of composite hedging has been...

The conditions under which pension schemes merge is an important issue that has been under-researched. Mergers can affect the strength of the sponsor’s covenant and the balance of power between the trustees and the sponsor, as well as the scheme funding ratio. This paper sets out two financial...

The trustees of funded defined benefit pension schemes must make two vital and inter-related decisions - setting the asset allocation and the contribution rate. While these decisions are usually taken separately, it is argued that they are intimately related and should be taken jointly. The...

There is widespread dissatisfaction amongst employers with defined benefit pension schemes, and many are switching to defined contribution schemes. Career average is a form of defined benefit scheme that has some important advantages over final salary schemes. The comparison of career average...