The world's biggest pension and investment funds grew to $12 trillion (€8.3 trillion) last year and are in a strong position to deal with the financial market crisis of the past 12 months, thanks to a focus on funding strategies and beefed-up risk controls, according to the investment consultancy Watson Wyatt.

These factors helped the top 300 funds in the world grow by 14% during last year to a combined $12 trillion as of December 31, the consultancy said. The growth came despite a slide in global markets in the second half of the year.