The last decade has seen seismic shifts in geopolitical, macroeconomic, capital market and technological trends. Today, uncertainty abounds: U.S. policy has become increasingly erratic, and artificial intelligence is advancing at a pace that promises massive productivity gains as well as disruption. How can investors navigate so much change and ongoing uncertainty? Here are some lessons […]
Global pension assets reached a record US$68.3 trillion in 2025, rising 9.6 per cent year over year, with defined contribution savings continuing to drive growth, according to WTW’s latest global pension assets study. The report credited the creation of $6 trillion of pension asset value to a year of sustained recovery across global markets with […]
The funded status of a typical Canadian defined benefit pension plan increased on both a solvency and accounting basis during the month of December, according to a new report by Telus Health. The monthly pension index revealed the typical DB plan grew slightly from 107.4 per cent in November to 109 per cent on the […]
The average Canadian defined benefit pension plan returned 0.6 per cent during the fourth quarter of 2025, down from 4.4 per cent in the previous quarter, according to a new report by the Royal Bank of Canada Investor Services. It found the average DB plan returned 7.9 per cent for the full year, down from […]
An article on the future of the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero and its impact on institutional investors was the most-read investment story on BenefitsCanada.com this year. Here are the top 10 investment stories of 2025: 1. Unraveling of Carney-led GFANZ doesn’t spell end of global climate action: expert 2. Financial markets resilient in […]
The funded status of a typical defined benefit pension plan in Canada increased on both a solvency basis and on an accounting basis in September, according to a new report by Telus Health. The solvency index for plans grew to 107.4 per cent, compared to 105.8 per cent at the end of August, while the […]
A representative defined benefit pension plan portfolio returned 0.8 per cent during the month of July due to a positive result from equities, according to a new report by Telus Health. It found the funded status of a typical DB pension plan increased both on a solvency basis to 104.3 per cent and on an […]
Canadian capital accumulation plan members are increasingly allocating their investments to target-date funds, according to a new report by Sun Life Financial Inc. The report analyzed 8,600 employer-sponsored CAPs in Sun Life’s database, representing 7,500 plan sponsors and 1.5 million plan members. It found two-fifths (42 per cent) of CAP members opted for TDFs, representing […]
U.S. public pension plan sponsors have significantly diversified their portfolios since 2001, allocating, on average, 20 per cent of assets from public equities and fixed income to private equity, real estate, hedge funds and other alternative investments, according to a new report by Aon and the National Institute on Retirement Security. It found this shift […]
Under unprecedented economic volatility, institutional investors are leaning on diversified asset mixes that are less reliant on public markets, says Claude St-Laurent, principal of pension and savings at Normandin Beaudry. He notes institutional investors are more frequently pushing beyond traditional equities and bonds to incorporate real estate, infrastructure and other alternative assets. Indeed, in the […]