7:30 – 8:30 AM:

Breakfast (Champlain Restaurant)

8:30 AM – 9:00 AM:

Opening remarks and icebreaker (Jacques-Cartier Room)

9:00 – 10:00 AM:

Navigating geopolitical risks and opportunities

As the founder and chairman of Signum Global Advisors, Charles Myers is a leading expert in geopolitical and macro risk as it relates to financial markets, corporations and the general public. Drawing on his experience and network within Washington, D.C. and beyond, this session will unpack some of the key issues facing North America and the world today, including war and security, national sovereignty, central bank independence, global trade and technology (including critical minerals) and rising inequality.

Speaker:

Charles Myers, chairman and founder, Signum Global Advisors

10:00 – 10:30 AM:

Are emerging markets set to continue outperforming global markets?

This session will explore whether emerging markets can sustain their recent outperformance amid shifting global economic conditions. It will examine key drivers for 2026 and beyond, including fundamental outlooks, key secular growth themes and technical and asset class characteristics.

Speaker:

Todd McClone, partner, portfolio manager, William Blair

10:30 – 11:00 AM:

Networking break (Place d’Armes Room)

11:00 – 11:30 AM:

Life beyond the Magnificent Seven: Smaller caps, big opportunities

This session will explore the alpha-rich, small- and mid-capitalization equity landscape. As market leadership shifts and broadens beyond mega-cap names, it will examine why a dedicated allocation to this space can add meaningful diversification and enhance total portfolio returns. The discussion will offer actionable insights about integrating small- and mid-cap strategies into institutional portfolios, with an emphasis on navigating changing market regimes, mitigating concentration risk and capturing underappreciated sources of growth.

Speaker:

Brian Dausch, portfolio specialist, vice-president, T. Rowe Price Group

11:30 AM – 12:00 PM:

Emerging markets: Learning to fly

This session will explore how emerging markets are embarking on a new cycle of self-sustaining growth. The theme marks a turning point, as EM countries strengthen their economic and political ties while reducing dependence on developed nations. As EM economies continue to decouple from developed markets trade, it should lower sensitivity to the developed market economic cycle and on U.S. dollar funding requirements. Meanwhile, the gradual shift away from the U.S. dollar in trade settlements, with EMs increasingly using local or regional currencies, supports the case for a weaker U.S. dollar going forward.

Speaker:

Phil Langham, managing director, senior portfolio manager, head, emerging markets equities, RBC Global Asset Management

12:00 – 1:00 PM:

Lunch (Champlain Restaurant)

1:00 – 1:30 PM:

Aligning public goals with pension fund realities

Governments increasingly call on pension funds to be “patriotic” and fund national priorities such as infrastructure, defense and the green and digital transitions. How can pension funds collaborate with governments and increase domestic investment while fulfilling their fiduciary obligations? This session will explore the evolving dynamic between Canadian pension funds and government agencies increasingly in need of financial support.

Speaker:

Sebastien Betermier, associate professor, finance, McGill University’s Desautels Faculty of Management, executive director, International Centre for Pension Management

1:30 – 2:00 PM:

Beyond beta: Rethinking alpha in long-term corporate bonds

In a market shaped by persistent spread compression and benchmark concentration, traditional sources of outperformance are increasingly constrained. This session will explore how significant alpha can be generated through diversified return drivers and an expanded implementation toolkit, reinforced by disciplined risk management aimed at delivering consistent performance across market environments.

Speaker:

Andréanne Pagé, associate vice-president, client solutions, Trans-Canada Capital

2:00 – 2:30 PM:

Networking break (Place d’Armes Room)

2:30 – 3:00 PM:

Panel: Emerging market equities demanding closer look in an uncertain global economy

During one of the most turbulent years in geopolitics, institutional investors gravitated to the potential of emerging market equities with the MSCI EM index outpacing the MSCI World index for the first time since 2020. Will this momentum continue amid ongoing talks of de-globalization? In this panel, experts will discuss the work required to keep up with EM equities and their long-term views.
Panellists:

Frédéric Gauvin, president, chief investment officer, Université du Sherbrooke pension plan

Michelle Hannen, director, pension office, University of Manitoba

Jia Wang, senior fellow, University of Alberta’s China Institute, senior fellow, Asia Pacific Foundation

3:00 – 3:30 PM:

Panel: Financing the growing global infrastructure gap 

Institutional investors are becoming the financing cornerstones in the increasing demand for new infrastructure projects in Canada and abroad. Experts anticipate nearly US$4.2 trillion is required to modernize existing global transportation, energy and digital infrastructure. In this session, decision-makers at some of Canada’s biggest pension investment organizations will discuss the opportunities and challenges they face right now and their expectations for the infrastructure investment landscape.

Panellists:

Jean-Bastien Auger, managing director, infrastructure investments, PSP Investments

Frédéric Lesage, managing director, infrastructure, La Caisse

Fred Robert, managing director, head, digital infrastructure, IMCO

6:00 – 9:30 PM:

Cocktail and dinner reception (Place d’Armes Room and the Cellar)