February 2024
02Feb

Climate Polarization and Green Investment

By Anders Anderson & David T. Robinson We build a nationally representative sample of retirement savers in Sweden to study how asymmetric updating of beliefs about climate change affects investment decisions. After the intense heat wave of 2018, respondents in regions dominated by a right-wing, anti-climate party grow less concerned about climate change, while respondents outside these regions grow more concerned. Those growing more concerned rebalance their retirement portfolios toward climate-friendly mutual funds; those growing less concerned rebalance out of...

February 2, 2024
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01Feb

Canadian funds tapping into investment opportunities in Brazil

By PALASH GHOSH   Canadian pension funds have been investing in Brazil, a huge country that boasts a growing $2.1 trillion economy, the largest such economy in Latin America and an especially attractive target for infrastructure and energy investments, as evidenced by the recent agreement by Caisse de Depot et Placement du Québec to increase its stake in a natural gas transmission firm. Ironically, Brazil jumped two spots last year to surpass Canada itself as the globe's ninth biggest economy, the International Monetary...

February 1, 2024
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January 2024
31Jan

U.K. looks to reprioritize investment flexibility in pension fund legislation

The U.K. government is amending proposed legislation to ensure defined benefit plans do not become overly risk averse, following a consultation review that was published online. DB plans in the U.K. will be able to take more investment risk when supported by sponsoring employers, according to the government's final position on the long-running development of new legislation for pension plans. "It was never (the U.K. government's) intention to bear down on risk-taking across the board. Rather, it was to make funding...

January 31, 2024
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31Jan

Australia regulator scrutinises pension funds over unlisted asset pricing

Australia's prudential regulator said on Wednesday it will review how sections of the A$2.5 trillion ($1.7 trillion) pension fund sector value unlisted assets and that it is already working with several funds whose practices need to improve. As part of its supervision priorities for the next six months, the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority said it will conduct a "deep dive review" into valuation practices at a number of large and mid-sized pension funds. The unnamed funds have material holdings of unlisted...

January 31, 2024
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29Jan

DC funds more open to real assets: Aviva

Seven in 10 defined contribution (DC) schemes plan to increase allocations to real assets in the next two years, according to new research from Aviva Investors. The company’s latest Real Assets Study found that 69% of corporate DC schemes planned to increase their allocation to asset classes such as property and infrastructure over the next 24 months. This was up from 51% in the 2023 edition of the study. The survey included schemes from the UK, Europe, Asia Pacific and...

January 29, 2024
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26Jan

Asset Manager, Pension Fund & ESG

By René Maatman & Kleis Broekhuizen  When it comes to sustainability, much is expected of pension funds. Of course, they must ensure value-proof pensions. They are also expected to contribute to the environment, climate, human rights, social justice, and corporate governance. ESG must be factored into investment policy. But how and to what extent? There are varying preferences within the population of pension participants. Politicians, action groups and NGOs have their own beliefs. Pension fund boards must make complex trade-offs. How...

January 26, 2024
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26Jan

Measuring the unintended consequences of public pension fund disinvestment from fossil fuel companies

Environmentalists are pursuing new strategies to pressure major polluters to decarbonise, including calling for widespread disinvestment from companies currently in the fossil fuel business. This column presents evidence that this strategy may be misguided. Focusing on public pension funds in the US, the authors find that companies reduced their greenhouse gas emissions when stock ownership by green funds increased, and did not alter their emissions when ownership by non-green funds changed. Ownership and constructive engagement were more effective than...

January 26, 2024
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25Jan

Money managers divided over Chinese equities

Global money managers are split as to whether buy signals are flashing for China stocks right now, even as they agree the equity market does look cheap. The gap between Chinese company market capitalizations and the U.S. stock market was $42.5 trillion as of market close Jan. 23, based on Pensions & Investments' calculations using Bloomberg data. Bloomberg reported Jan. 23 that Chinese stocks have lost more than $6.3 trillion in value from a February 2021 peak, vs. a $5.3 trillion...

January 25, 2024
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24Jan

UK pension funds turn to renewable energy investment

UK pension funds and insurers are keen to increase allocations to renewable energy in the coming years, according to new research. A survey by AlphaReal, a specialist real assets manager, found that a majority of pension funds and insurers planned to increase their allocation to renewable energy in the next year. The survey, which included institutions with a combined £360bn in assets under management, found that 90% of respondents planned to increase their allocation to renewables, with the remaining 10% open...

January 24, 2024
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19Jan

The Most Often Overlooked Step In Retirement Planning

When it comes to retirement planning, conversations often center around portfolio management and investment strategies—what I like to call the bling of the financial world. Generally, you sit down with an advisor and begin your work together by listing all your assets and expenses. They, in turn, provide you with a thick report of projected returns, inflation assumptions, and a—likely daunting—required savings number for your retirement nest egg. More often than not, they then offer a fancy investment product or...

January 19, 2024
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