An altering macroeconomic environment means that cost management requires continual attention by pension plans and other institutional investors. Today, as inflation and higher-for-longer rates exert upward pressure on institutional investors’ costs in a variety of areas, from technology to team member salaries, it’s time once again to re-evaluate the fees being paid to external asset […]
The Ontario Municipal Employees’ Retirement System earned a net investment return of 4.4 per cent for the first six months of this year, helped by the performance of its investments in public equities and strong contributions from its holdings in private credit and infrastructure. The fund had a good start to the year, reflecting the […]
The Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec returned 4.2 per cent in the first half of 2024, underperforming its benchmark of 4.6 per cent. As at June 30, 2024, the Caisse’s net assets totalled $452 billion. Its average annualized returns over five and 10 years were six per cent and 7.1 per cent, respectively. […]
The funded ratio of the average Canadian defined benefit pension plan grew by two per cent during the second quarter of 2024 and nine per cent since the start of the year to 126 per cent, according to a new report by Normandin Beaudry. It found the average solvency ratio of Canadian pension plans rose […]
The average projected solvency ratio for Ontario defined benefit pension plans was 122 per cent as of March 31, 2024, up three per cent from Dec. 31, 2023, according to a new report by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario. It found 90 per cent of DB plans were projected to be fully funded […]
It’s important for institutional investors to view risk mitigation as a way to improve the risk-return proposition and not as a way to express a bearish view on markets, said Rémi Tétreault, associate vice-president at Trans-Canada Capital, during the Canadian Investment Review‘s 2024 Global Investment Conference in April. “It’s about performing well in a wide […]
While real assets are largely absent among the investment options offered by Canadian defined contribution pension plans, they can offer significant long-term benefits to plan members, said Andrew Knox, managing director of Franklin Templeton Investments’ global real assets fund, during a session at Benefits Canada’s 2024 DC Plan Summit in February. “[Defined contribution] investors in […]
The funded ratio of the average Canadian defined benefit pension plan, excluding the effect of asset smoothing, reached 124 per cent as at March 31, 2024, up seven per cent from the fourth quarter of 2023, according to a new report by Normandin Beaudry. It found the average solvency ratio of Canadian pension plans was […]
Simply put, a glide path is a calculation designed to support an employee’s desired retirement timeline through investments in a target-date fund. When an employee first joins a defined contribution pension plan with a target-date fund, they’re exposed to capital appreciation assets that offer the most attractive risk-adjusted returns in the wealth accumulation phase, typically […]
Global pension assets increased by 11 per cent to reach US$55.7 trillion in 2023, up from $50.2 trillion at the end of 2022, according to a new report by WTW’s Thinking Ahead Institute. This growth was attributed to stronger capital market performance following a much more negative impact from markets in the correction of 2022, […]