Defined benefit pension plans and defined contribution pension plans are uncertain about how to incorporate environmental, social and governance issues into their investment processes in a way that’s consistent with fiduciary duties, according to a new white paper from the Association of Canadian Pension Management. “Sustainable investing, including ESG, is an area where some investment […]
Regulations on emerging decentralized finance technology have proven difficult to enforce, in part because, in the world of self-fulfilling digital contracts, it isn’t always clear which individuals should be held to account. During a session at the Canadian Investment Review‘s 2022 Global Investment Conference in April, Ryan Clements, assistant professor and chair in business law […]
The Pension Fund Coalition is publishing a set of generic contracts aimed to help plan sponsors in establishing minimum environmental, social and governance criteria with asset managers. The model contracts are designed to be flexible across a range of scenarios, approaches and asset classes, according to a press release, which noted although the coalition is […]
While official diversity, equity and inclusion policies have been widely adopted by U.S. institutional asset management organizations, these policies have made little difference to the makeup of executive ranks, according to a survey by Meketa Investment Group. The survey, which was based on responses provided by 420 U.S. institutional asset managers, found by the end of […]
The Pension Investment Association of Canada is urging the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions to ensure its guidance on pension investment risk management is flexible enough to be appropriate for plans of all sizes. In an open letter, PIAC chair Sean Hewitt addressed 15 points posed by the OSFI to the pension investment sector related […]
The Defined Contribution Institutional Investment Association is calling on the U.S. government to develop flexible emergency savings solutions for employees. The Washington, D.C.-based organization is among 38 signatories calling for the creation of a national financial inclusion strategy. The strategy should reflect several key principles, including automatic enrolment in workplace emergency savings plans that are […]
The Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario is introducing a whistleblower program to more effectively identify misconduct in the pensions and non-securities financial services sectors. The program will apply to any individual or entity who comes forward in good faith with valuable, timely and non-public/insider information related to an alleged or intended contravention in any […]
While Quebec’s Auditor General Guylaine LeClerc says the Caisse de Dépôt et Placement du Québec’s exposure to international and private markets is increasing fraud and corruption risks, the institutional investor is describing its strategy as “essential.” “Diversification, both in terms of geography and asset classes, is essential to meet the return needs of our depositors over […]
The viability of a public defined benefit pension plan is best judged by its fiscal sustainability rather than its overall liabilities, according to a new report by the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems. The report, written by Michael Kahn, director of research at the NCPERS (pictured right), found fiscally sustainable pension plans have […]
New Brunswick’s new unclaimed property regime, which came into force on Jan. 1, 2022 and is the fourth such provincial regime in Canada, will finally allow defined benefit pension plan sponsors with unlocatable or missing members to fully windup their plans. The governing legislation, the Unclaimed Property Act, received Royal Assent in March 2021, but […]