Working Well seeks out Canada’s best and brightest employers—those who not only support, but also promote wellness in their workplace. This issue, we take a behind-the-scenes look at the wellness initiatives of Amex Bank of Canada and Amex Canada Inc. in an exclusive interview with President and CEO Denise Pickett. American Express in Canada operates […]
Critics of leveraged exchange traded products probably don’t understand how to use them properly, according to leading independent investment fund analyst Dan Hallett. “I think the first lesson is to read the prospectus thoroughly,” Hallett says. “This I think is at the core of any of the criticisms that are out there. Had investors in […]
After a difficult year of deal inactivity and portfolio writedowns, the global private equity market may be stirring once again. Global stock market gains in the second quarter of 2009 have encouraged profits, lifted investment value and spurred a few notable initial public offerings (IPOs), signalling distribution gains to investors. Private equity’s limited partner investors—including […]
The defined contribution (DC) market in Canada has some growing up to do when compared with markets in the U.S. and the U.K. In fact, according to Statistics Canada, only 37% of the country’s pension plans are DC. As more employers close their defined benefit (DB) plans and offer up DC alternatives, a growth spurt […]
While the active versus passive asset management debate typically revolves around equity funds, the latest Standard & Poor’s Index Versus Active (SPIVA) report out of the U.S. suggests there is no question that indexing outperforms on the fixed income side of the portfolio. Over one-, three- and five-year time horizons, a huge majority of actively […]
Two years ago, Canada’s socially responsible investing (SRI) community was in a cheerful, even celebratory mood. Many of the country’s major pension funds, particularly in the public sector, had reversed their position on sustainable investing, embracing the concept that environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues do have an impact on a company’s bottom line and […]
Asset bubbles: how do they form and what happens when they burst? Asset bubbles have been a part of the investment landscape for centuries. A review of several famous historical asset bubbles helps us build and describe a framework to understand the anatomy of these phenomena. Within this framework, a description of several recent asset […]
Are target date funds a healthy choice for plan sponsors concerned about member engagement? Many plan members remain in a state of investment and retirement planning inertia when it comes to their capital accumulation plans (CAPs). For some plan sponsors, the target date fund (TDF) may seem like a quick and easy solution to satisfy […]
This credit cycle is much like any other—a protracted period of low credit spreads lulling investors into a false sense of security, a sharp spike in credit spreads as investors made a mad dash for the exit doors, followed with a marked increase in default rates. What is a little different this time is the […]
The TFSA is finally here! How can employers and employees make the most of it? With the long wait finally over, Canadians from all income, demographic and occupational groups can now benefit from the new tax-free savings account (TFSA). The TFSA is the result of a comprehensive tax policy analysis and review by the federal […]