As crypto currency gains further traction in the global marketplace, do institutional investors have a fiduciary responsibility to examine its potential? Perhaps the answer lies in Bitcoin’s performance relative to other, more traditional asset classes, suggested Elisabeth Préfontaine, founder of Octonomics, at an event hosted by the Global Risk Institute in Toronto on Wednesday. “When […]
An alliance of the world’s largest pension funds and insurers responsible for more than US$2.4 trillion in investments is committing to carbon-neutral investment portfolios by 2050. The commitment was launched by the newly formed, United Nations-convened Net-Zero Asset Owner Alliance. It was introduced at the UN Climate Action Summit to strengthen commitments and accelerate the implementation of […]
Fee compression is putting pressure on providers that are seeking to be more innovative in launching new target-date funds, prompting managers to consider more customization, according to new research by Cerulli Associates. The fee compression challenge is bolstering certain trends among target-date managers, including blending passive and active strategies, as well as the push towards […]
A group of institutional investors representing more than US$500 billion is calling on the U.S. Congress to vote down the Canada-United States-Mexico trade agreement to prevent extended monopoly rights for pharmaceutical companies in all three countries. The Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility, which represents more than 300 religious institutional investors, pension funds, foundations, asset managers […]
The University of British Columbia Investment Management Trust Inc. has appointed Dawn Jia as its president and chief executive officer, effective Sept. 13, 2019. In her new role, Jia will be responsible for managing the organization’s portfolios, including the selection and oversight of fund managers and ensuring operating objectives are achieved. Read: Ontario Teachers’ COO of enterprise […]
As the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission moves to increase its oversight over proxy voting advisory firms, Horizons ETFs is evolving its proxy voting policies to take on a more socially responsible investing position. “We do have an obligation to our unit-holders to act in their best fiduciary interest, but we also have a socially responsible requirement as […]
The British Columbia Investment Management Corp., the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec and the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan are among 42 global firms acting to implement ideas to increase diversity and inclusion in investment management. This commitment to action is part of the CFA Institute’s Experimental Partners Program, which was inspired by a […]
As the gap continues to widen between required infrastructure spending and actual dedicated funds, according to the G20, private infrastructure projects represent a strong opportunity for institutional investors. Speaking at TD Asset Management Inc.’s institutional investment symposium in Toronto on Wednesday, Matthew Press, the firm’s vice-president of infrastructure investments, said the funding gap in the G20 […]
The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board is making its first infrastructure investment in Indonesia, with the acquisition of a 45 per cent interest in PT Lintas Marga Sedaya, the concession holder and operator of the Cipali toll road, a critical link in the transportation network of the island of Java. PT Baskhara Utama Sedaya, a wholly-owned subsidiary of PT […]
The University of California is dumping fossil fuel investments from its nearly $84 billion pension and endowment funds, calling them a financial risk. An opinion article in Tuesday’s Los Angeles Times says the university will make its endowment fund “fossil free” by month’s end and its pension fund, which covers 320,000 people, will soon follow. Read: Divesting from […]