<p dir="ltr" id="docs-internal-guid-7dc7e331-6635-0eeb-7af3-1f2b0c901cb6">The three Italian pension schemes for employees of co-operatives are to merge, creating a single DC scheme with &euro;1.8bn in assets and more than 117,000 members.</p> <p dir="ltr">The merger was agreed upon by co-operatives associations Agci, Confcooperative, and Legacoop, and the three main Italian trade unions, Cgil, Cisl, and Uil.</p> <p dir="ltr">The parties issued a joint press release praising the &ldquo;historical&rdquo; agreement. The merger between the three existing pension schemes &ndash; Cooperlavoro, Previcooper, and Filcoop &ndash; will create the fifth-largest pension scheme in Italy by members and the eighth-largest in terms of assets under management.</p> <p dir="ltr">The statement said: &ldquo;Trade unions and cooperatives [&hellip;] are launching the most significant merger project between pension funds in Italy in the private sector.</p>