This year has been a difficult one for emerging market currencies, but there are signs that 2022 will give investors reason to be optimistic. “For the first time in 20 years, U.S. growth is outperforming EM growth,” said Fernando Grisales, senior emerging market portfolio manager at Schroders, during his presentation at the 2021 Global Investment […]
Some four decades ago, parliamentarians voted to restrict pension funds’ ability to borrow money without losing their tax-exempt status, though their reasoning has been lost to time. “These rules have been around forever, but . . . their intended purpose [remains obscure],” said Matias Milet, a partner at Osler, Hoskin and Harcourt LLP, during a […]
As places of economic activity, flood plains have their advantages — just ask the ancient Mesopotamians or the staff of the Winnipeg-based Teachers’ Retirement Allowance Fund. “Those of you who have been to our offices will know we’re right at the intersection of the Red and Assiniboine rivers. We are right in the flood plain […]
The recent emphasis on environmental, social and governance issues among pension investors will continue to dominate industry conversations in the future, according to a panel discussion with three high-profile figures in Canada’s investment sector during the 2021 Global Investment Conference. “If I could rename ESG, it would be GES,” said Alain Malaket, chief executive officer […]
The end of Canada’s quantitative easing strategy and higher than expected interest rates will be beneficial to Canadian defined benefit pension plans, according to Sebastien Betermier, an associate professor of finance at McGill University’s Desautels Faculty of Management. On Wednesday, Tiff Macklem, governor of the Bank of Canada, announced plans to end its quantitative easing policy and […]
A number of Canadian institutional investors are urging corporations to begin addressing climate change risks and opportunities in order to receive their investment dollars. Some 36 institutional investors, including Bâtirente, the British Columbia Investment Management Corp., the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, the Investment Management Corp. of Ontario, the Ontario Pension Board and the […]
The typical Canadian defined benefit pension plan deteriorated on a solvency basis but improved on an accountancy basis in September, according to a new report by LifeWorks Inc. Its monthly report on DB pension indices found the average plan saw its solvency index dip from 109.4 per cent at the end of August to 108.8 […]
While the return of two Canadians imprisoned in China since 2018 may lead the Canadian government to rethink its relationship with the world’s most populous country, the Chinese market will remain open to Canadian institutional investors, says Jia Wang, interim director of the China Institute at the University of Alberta. “There is an opportunity for […]
A new white paper published by the Canadian Institute of Actuaries is proposing new rules during defined benefit plan windups, requiring higher solvency ratios for members who are retired and lower ones for those at earlier stages in their careers. “This paper suggests that retiree pensions would be better protected if the solvency funding regime framework […]
When the University Pension Plan officially launched in July 2021, it did so with Barbara Zvan as its inaugural president and chief executive officer. Fresh from a 25-year career with the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, she was appointed by the UPP’s board of trustees in July 2020. While most of the foundational work had been […]