Quantum Advisory, the leading pensions and employee benefits consultancy for small and medium sized schemes and employers, has today published the results from its latest quarterly Fiduciary Management (FM) Dashboard as part of its ongoing ‘State of Play’ series.
Results from Q1 2026 indicate a continued focus on portfolio stability and risk reduction, with a long-term de-risking trend across mandates.
Likely due to improvements in funding positions for defined benefit schemes where around four in five schemes are now in surplus, investment approaches are being adapted to target lower returns to protect funding positions. At the end of Q1 2026, the majority of mandates targeted a return of less than 1.5% above liabilities,
Anne-Marie Gillon, Principal Investment Consultant at Quantum Advisory, said: “Improved funding positions are clearly influencing how fiduciary management is being approached. Lower return targets and high hedge ratios point to a market that is prioritising stability, protecting its funding levels and minimising the impact of volatility.
“This is a continuation of a trend that we have seen in previous editions of our quarterly dashboard; the deliberate and measured approach to de-risking for schemes to meet their long-term strategic objectives.”
The dashboard also reveals other key developments in the fiduciary management landscape including:
- The steady appointment of new mandates at the larger end of the market
- An increase, over the long-term, in the number of risk transfer transactions for mandates.
Gillon added: “The fiduciary management market continues to see steady appointment activity at the larger end, with recent growth in assets under management driven by larger schemes moving to fiduciary or OCIO governance arrangements. Schemes with assets of more than £1bn account for 4% of total appointments but around two-thirds of assets under management. By contrast, the number of smaller mandates has declined over the past 12 months as smaller schemes increasingly move towards endgame risk transfer transactions.
“As more small and medium-sized schemes consider their endgame options, they need the same quality of investment oversight as larger schemes despite having less internal resource. A well-defined fiduciary management arrangement can help schemes meet their governance obligations and keep their strategy aligned with their long-term goals without complexity.
“Regular reviews of fiduciary management arrangements are essential for trustees and scheme sponsors, helping ensure providers continue to understand scheme-specific needs, keep pace with market developments and support long-term journey plans. Our dashboard is designed as a tool to help schemes make informed decisions with confidence by providing access to timely market data.”
