Jacky Shen suspects he was the oldest intern Simon Fraser University’s treasury department ever had. It was 2007, he was in his early 40s, had just arrived in Canada with his family and was studying for a master’s degree in the university’s wealth management program. As an intern, Shen — now the university’s treasurer and […]
An article on Saskatchewan’s Public Employees Benefits Agency transition to a not-for-profit corporation was the most-read story on BenefitsCanada.com over the last week. Here are the five most popular news stories of the week: 1. Saskatchewan’s pension and benefits administrator transitioning to not-for-profit model 2. University Pension Plan’s assets declined 9.1% in 2022, led by public equities 3. Survey […]
Environmental, social and governance investing is a powerful tool that can reveal systemic issues impacting all parts of institutional investors’ portfolios, said Aaron Bennett, chief investment officer of the University Pension Plan, during the 2023 Responsible Investment Association conference last week. Some of these issues can accrue over time — and, when they finally manifest, they can […]
On April 12-14, a group of defined benefit pension plan sponsors, asset managers and academics gathered at the Fairmont Chateau Whistler in British Columbia for the 2023 Global Investment Conference. Over the course of three days, presenters discussed whether the Canadian pension model remains fit for purpose in a period defined by central bank intervention, […]
In December 2021, Simon Fraser University announced the global equity portfolios for its non-pension related funds — valued at $450 million — would divest from fossil fuel producers. Four months later, the three members of its treasury team, which is led by Jacky Shen, treasurer and director of investment at the university, announced it had […]
When key stakeholders are examining sustainability solutions, they aren’t spending enough time on whether these solutions are actually capital efficient from energy return on investment and productivity perspectives, said Patrick Kent, portfolio manager and head of the small-cap equities team at Newton Investment Management Group, during the Canadian Investment Review‘s 2023 Global Investment Conference. The […]
There’s a distinct window of opportunity for institutional investors to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns through refurbishing brown buildings in Europe to make them operationally carbon neutral, said Lucy Swinton, investment director at Fidelity International, during the Canadian Investment Review’s 2023 Global Investment Conference. Environmental, social and governance — particularly the ‘E’ aspects — is increasingly becoming a disruptive […]
The Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology pension plan is appointing Karen Lockridge as director of responsible investing. In the new role, she’ll be responsible for developing and refining the CAAT’s responsible investing strategy, including research, analysis and reporting on the pension plan’s environmental, social and governance activities. Lockridge will also provide guidance to the […]
While there’s a lot of noise and confusion around environmental, social and governance factors, it comes down to delivering value for investors in terms of better risk-adjusted returns, said Aaron White, CIBC Asset Management Inc.’s vice-president of sustainable investments, during a session at Benefits Canada‘s 2023 DC Plan Summit. Part of the confusion around the topic, he […]
With eight billion people consuming the planet’s resources, assets such as clean energy and sustainable agriculture are becoming increasingly important to institutional investors, said John Cook, senior vice-president, portfolio manager and co-lead of the Greenchip team at Mackenzie Investments, during a session at Benefits Canada‘s 2023 DC Plan Summit. Each year, it takes roughly 13.5 billion tons […]