Top news
Swedish pensioners’ lobby decries piecemeal approach to pension reform
New pension supplement forms part of new government’s budget plan, but political upheaval dominates events
UK DC scheme market consolidation set to increase
Fewer than 500 DC schemes to remain in the U.K. market by 2030
MN cuts 200 jobs as PME leaves
Most jobs to go are in the area of pensions administration
Irish pensions regulator unveils revised code for IORP II era
Risk management said to be at core of new code
EC tables central data portal proposal as part of CMU package
Commission also pledges more CMU actions in 2022, but pensions adequacy not mentioned
Germany sets course to draw investor capital for digital, green transformation
The aim is to facilitate the flow of private capital from institutional investors, including insurance companies and pension funds
UK roundup: Kempen wins fiduciary mandate
Plus: Link Group launches digital platform; FCA’s proposal for a new default option
Alecta stung by red light sustainability ranking in Söderberg report
Alecta ESG chief says firm does not recognise report’s description of its strategy
Norway’s new PM, NBIM CEO highlight climate priority for SWF
GPFG has yet to formally adopt a 2050 net-zero goal
People moves: Credit Suisse names sustainable investing global head
Germany’s next govt plans fund for capital funded pensions
Lawyers back superfunds as strong ‘Plan B’ for DB plans
NBIM latest appointee to taskforce on nature-linked reporting
Detailhandel launches SDG benchmark for credit portfolio
Austrian investment funds risk losses of up to €20bn due to green transition
IOSCO suggests greater regulatory attention on ESG ratings, data
Almost half of Dutch pharmacists want fossil fuel divestment
TAI tallies $23trn for top 100 asset owners, urges ‘systems leadership’
Private markets protect institutional investors in time of crisis – study
Mandate roundup: FRR awards corporate bond mandates
AP3 defends nuclear arms holdings: ‘We follow council’s recommendations’
Dutch retirement benefits up 10-20% in new DC system, say consultants
Ethos to push biodiversity, digital responsibility in engagement strategy
Asset managers shy away from absolute carbon reduction targets
Achmea is rare among large European institutional managers to have set an absolute emissions reduction target
Swiss pension funds almost triple assets invested to cut CO2 emissions
Schemes have this year invested 22% of their assets based on active strategies leading to a reduction of CO2 emissions
On the record: Beware of the label
Three European pension funds share their views on greenwashing and discuss what to do about it
Strategically speaking: Finreon
Established 12 years ago as a spin-off from Switzerland’s renowned University of St Gallen, Finreon is a quant asset management specialist that styles itself as an investment adviser and a think tank. It has recently weighed into the debate on portfolio decarbonisation with a novel solution for listed equities.
How we run our money: PKA
Michael Nellemann Pedersen, CIO at PKA, tells Carlo Svaluto Moreolo about the Danish pension provider’s investment philosophy
Strategically Speaking: Aviva Investors
Insurance-owned asset managers can be difficult to pigeonhole. Some have forged strong specialisms, often in fixed income, but now also in alternatives like property or niche credit. Others have remained a corporate backwater absorbed by group general-account assets.
How we run our money: PMT
Hartwig Liersch (pictured), chief investment officer at Pensioenfonds Metaal & Techniek (PMT), tells Tjibbe Hoekstra how the largest private market pension fund in the Netherlands is looking to strengthen its investment policy to address the climate crisis
People moves: Credit Suisse names sustainable investing global head
Credit Suisse AM, LGIM, Investment Association, Aon, Newton, Neuberger Berman, MN, Golding Capital Partners
AllianceBernstein forms institutional solutions group [updated]
Five-strong team is coming from the sell-side business, Bernstein Research
Briefing: Insurance-linked securities
Hurricane Ida in late August and early September caused great damage to the southern coast of the US. Fortunately, for people in this area, insurance policies often cover destructions to their properties. Since covering such damage can lead to severe losses for insurance companies, they are keen to reinsure themselves.
Briefing: Dutch fiduciary management
A new pensions agreement between the Dutch cabinet and social partners last year requires nearly all Dutch pension funds to switch to a new defined contribution (DC) contract. It includes a lifecycle system and personal pension pots. The idea is to combine collective and individual components in one pension agreement.
Briefing: UK fiduciary management
In 2019, the UK government introduced reforms to the investment consultancy and fiduciary management sector. That followed a review by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) that identified competition problems.
Notes from Germany: Parties mull pensions
It all started with a selfie posted on social media. The leaders of the Green party Annalena Baerbock, candidate to be chancellor, and Robert Habeck posed with the Free Democrats’ Christian Lindner and Volker Wissing to show how serious they were to bridge the divide to form a new government coalition, prior to meeting with the winner of the election, the SDP’s Olaf Scholz.
Co-investment newcomers need to be selective
The US and UK are seeing a diminishing number of companies in the listed markets whilst the private equity (PE) markets are booming. For investors, that raises a number of issues, of which fees are an important one. Private equity fees are much higher than those of listed equity managers.
Engagement, divestment and emerging alternatives
Investment analysts make contrasting buy and sell recommendations for individual securities based on identical financial information – down to the last decimal point. The differential is judgement.
Viewpoint: How has the pandemic affected the UK – small-cap value investing
By Beini Zhou and Anand Vasagiri, portfolio managers, international small-cap value strategy, Artisan Partners
Viewpoint: What pension schemes should consider when upping renewables
Renewity’s CIO, David Hunter, outlines five considerations for pension schemes looking to up their renewables exposure
Viewpoint: What if COP26 fails?
Peter Kraneveld, international pensions adviser at PRIME bv., on finance issues and COP26
Notes from Germany: Parties mull pensions
It all started with a selfie posted on social media. The leaders of the Green party Annalena Baerbock, candidate to be chancellor, and Robert Habeck posed with the Free Democrats’ Christian Lindner and Volker Wissing to show how serious they were to bridge the divide to form a new government coalition, prior to meeting with the winner of the election, the SDP’s Olaf Scholz.
Co-investment newcomers need to be selective
The US and UK are seeing a diminishing number of companies in the listed markets whilst the private equity (PE) markets are booming. For investors, that raises a number of issues, of which fees are an important one. Private equity fees are much higher than those of listed equity managers.
Asset class: Private equity
Co-investment in private equity is easier said than done: we look at what it takes to be a successful co-investor. We also look at Africa where there are an array of opportunities for investors
Emerging market debt
Our opening article in this report looks at emerging market private credit. In EMs there is a $100bn corporate funding gap with 90% of lending through banks. But we find EMD managers broadly cautious overall, particularly on China, with interviews conducted before the Evergrande story broke. Lastly, we look at Latin America, where investors encounter populism and social unrest but sustainability bond issuance is booming.
Asset class: Equities
The number of listed companies in the US and the UK has fallen dramatically over the past quarter century, putting more pressure on institutional investors to invest in private equity, as we cover in this report. The report also looks at the emerging market small-cap sector and UK’s micro caps.
Inflation: Riding the wave
As the outlook for inflation becomes increasingly cloudy, European institutional investors try to focus on long-term trends
Portfolio strategy: Credit
As the institutional investment community heads towards a post-COVID new normal, private credit remains a favourite among investors despite inflationary headwinds. In this report, we also cover the record amounts of capital raised by private-debt funds last year, the latest developments ESG in private markets, and how the digital transformation accelerated by COVID is impacting private debt.
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