The universe of defined benefit pension managers’ pooled funds posted a median return of 1.5 per cent before management fees in the fourth quarter of 2025 and 11.8 per cent for the full year, according to a new report by Telus Health. Major stock market indices provided strong performances in Q4 even though the macro […]
An article on the structural barriers Indigenous women continue to face in workplace retirement plans and benefits programs was the most-read article on BenefitsCanada.com this past week. Here are the top five human resources, benefits, pension and investment stories of the last week: 1. Indigenous women face persistent barriers to workplace retirement, benefits plans: expert 2. […]
The majority (85 per cent) of U.S. institutional asset owners rely on consultants to oversee manager selection, performance monitoring, asset allocation and even outsourced chief investment officer services, according to a new report by Crisil Coalition Greenwich. The report found the consulting industry has been reshaped following significant consolidation, adoption of the OCIO model, increased […]
The de-globalization movement is the latest trend pushing emerging markets to increase collaboration with one another, says Indrani De, head of global investment research at FTSE Russell. After U.S. President Donald Trump announced global tariffs in April 2025, uncertainty around global trade began to increase and analysts expected emerging markets would be severely impacted, she […]
The Canadian pension risk transfer market reached roughly $6.8 billion in 2025, down from a record $11 billion in 2024, according to a new report by Sun Life Financial Inc. The report found these transactions consisted of risk transfers valued at less than $800 million, noting 115 defined benefit plan sponsors purchased group annuities in […]
The OPSEU Pension Trust is reporting a 4.2 per cent net investment return in 2025, according to its latest year-end report. As at Dec. 31, 2025, the plan remained fully funded for the 17th consecutive year. Over the longer term, the fund reported a five-year annualized return of 6.3 per cent and a 10-year return […]
Private equity has played a diversifying role in the portfolios of institutional investors but the asset class could be showing signs of concern. Most outlooks show a landscape of companies slowing down their initial public offerings and mergers and acquisitions in favour of staying private for longer. A report from BlackRock Inc. indicated investors are […]
The Canadian financial system showed resilience amid a volatile 2025 marked by increased economic uncertainty, according to the latest systemic risk committee report by the Canadian Securities Administrators. It found trade conflict slowed down economic activity, but economic growth exceeded earlier expectations. Indeed, Canadian investments are facing a variety of external risks impacting long-term outlooks, […]
The funded status of the 100 largest U.S. defined benefit pension plans is projected to have reached 84.7 per cent as of Nov. 30, 2025, according to a new report by Milliman Inc. It noted the last time these plans reached similar heights was in December 2021, when the funded ratio reached 85.5 per cent, […]
U.S. tariff rates, global trade relationships and growing opportunities in artificial intelligence are among the key factors impacting institutional investors in 2026, according to a new report by WTW. It found in 2025, the U.S. effective tariff rate rose dramatically, from 2.3 per cent in January to 13.5 per cent by the end of the […]