A six-strong cadre of City firms have won mandates as the Merchant Navy Ratings Pensions Fund (MNRPF) has gone to court in an attempt to fill a multi-million pound hole in its fund by extracting greater contributions from members.

The trial, which started this week, was originally expected to last between eight and 10 days, but is now set to last several weeks with the pension fund’s deficit ballooning past the £350 million mark.