Nearly two-thirds of institutional investors say they’re planning to increase their allocations to real assets over the next two years, amid a backdrop of inflation and sustainability challenges, according to a survey by Aviva Investors. The survey, which polled 500 institutional investors from around the world, found nearly half (47 per cent) said they have […]
The Canadian Institute of Actuaries is urging the federal government to reconsider its cessation of real return bond issuances, citing the potential financial impacts to defined benefit pension plans. “We request not only that the decision to cease issuing real return bonds be reconsidered, but also that the annual issuance of real return bonds be […]
During history’s turning points, fortune favours the innovators. As the world moves beyond the coronavirus pandemic and the global workforce entrenches the improved labour conditions it created, the need for businesses to welcome new ideas is at an apex. At the 2022 Investment Innovation Conference at the Fairmont Scottsdale Princess in Scottsdale, Ariz. on Nov. […]
Few people have as clear a perspective on the differences between public sector defined benefit pension plans in Canada and the U.S. as Paul Matson. “I know the Canadian system,” said the executive director of the Arizona State Retirement System, during a session at the Canadian Investment Review‘s 2022 Investment Innovation Conference. “Before [the Alberta Investment […]
The real estate arm of the British Columbia Investment Management Corp. is acquiring a stake in a private company that provides financing for large-scale real estate development projects across the U.K. According to the terms of the deal between the QuadReal Property Group and Précis Capital’s founding institutional shareholder TowerBrook, the investment organization will secure […]
U.S. defined contribution pension plan sponsors are increasingly offering custom target-date funds, according to a new report by the Defined Contribution Institutional Investment Association. The report, which analyzed 100 DC plans in both the public and private sectors, found the plan sponsors used more than 1,000 investment strategies involving custom target-date funds in 2021, up […]
The Alberta Investment Management Corp. has received a top grade in a survey of the environmental, social and governance integration and performance of signatories of the United Nations’ principles of responsible investing in 2021. The PRI, an organization founded by a group of institutional investment organizations, launched the pilot survey to track the ESG performance […]
The market value of assets held by Canadian trusteed pension funds decreased 5.4 per cent to $2.1 trillion in the second quarter of 2022, down from $2.21 trillion in the previous quarter, according to new data from Statistics Canada. Trusteed pension funds posted a net loss of $3.4 billion in the second quarter, compared with […]
If there was one message for defined benefit pension plan sponsor delegates at the 2022 Defined Benefit Investment Forum, it was that the fate of global markets in 2023 is on a knife’s edge. In the keynote address, Douglas Porter, chief economist and managing director at BMO Financial Group, said he expects the Canadian economy […]
In the current market, institutional investors should consider increasing allocations to real estate and real estate investment trusts, said Joseph Shaw, managing partner and head of institutional sales at Hazelview Investments, during the Canadian Investment Review’s 2022 Defined Benefit Investment Forum. In the past decade, the average defined benefit pension plan’s allocation to real estate has risen, […]