SEI launches long duration credit bond fund

SEI has launched a long duration credit bond fund, which is designed to help Canadian DB plan sponsors minimize pension expense volatility by enabling them to balance pension liabilities with more suitably matched assets.

The fund is designed in a manner consistent with Fiera Capital’s Canadian Institute of Actuaries method accounting discount rate curve.

“A vital step in managing assets in tandem with liabilities requires selecting an appropriate discount rate to value those liabilities,” says Andrew Kitchen, managing director, solutions and strategies, with SEI’s institutional group.

“The SEI Long Duration Credit Bond Fund is designed to generate a yield consistent with the 16-year duration point on the Fiera Curve, allowing plan sponsors to optimize assets with liabilities and, most important, to minimize the impact of the pension benefit on corporate financials.”

The fund invests in investment-grade corporate, provincial and municipal debt in an effort to generate higher risk-adjusted yield relative to other sectors and risk-free assets.