Active investing
In-depth reporting on active investment strategies for our pension fund and asset management readers from IPE’s award-winning journalists.
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NewsPeople’s Pension adds to equity manager roster with £3.6bn EM mandate
Appointing Robeco represents a shift from a passive approach to an active quantitative strategy for UK pension fund’s emerging markets portfolio
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AnalysisIPE Netherlands Briefing: Dutch GP fund defies buy-and-hold equity promise
Plus: With the Dutch pension transition gearing up, the Dutch market for buyouts, estimated to be worth some €20-30bn, appears to be accelerating
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AnalysisDutch GP fund equity shake-up defies buy-and-hold promise
The Dutch pension fund for doctors introduced a new concentrated equities strategy at the start of the year, promising ‘as few transactions as possible’
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NewsNBIM talks up active management success, moves to increase SWF’s risk
Manager of Norway’s sovereign wealth fund tells government active management has been more profitable in last five years than before
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NewsSwedish funds agency details upcoming US dual tender, unveils €7bn 2026 plan
FTN says next year’s plan includes procurements for SEK41bn US/North American equity funds, then healthcare/biotech funds and the first fixed income funds category
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Asset Class ReportsDown, but not out: Private equity enters a recovery phase
GPs are staging a comeback after several years of disappointing returns
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Asset Class ReportsConcentrated portfolios: How investors are challenging common wisdom by reverting to old-fashioned stock picking
For equity investors of all kinds, the clear trend of the past few decades has been a shift away from stock picking and towards broadly diversified portfolios, managed through passive index exposure or, at most, passive-enhanced or quantitative strategies.
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Opinion PiecesPension funds may see merits in owning few stocks, but concentrated equity strategies carry undue risk
When a small but influential group of pension funds, mostly located in the Netherlands, signals a clear shift away from broad equity diversification and towards more concentrated strategies, it does not go unnoticed.
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Asset Class ReportsCase study: Pension Danmark focuses on AI, robotics and defence as it weighs up the value of active management
Erik Bennike, head of equities at PensionDanmark, explains the fund’s carefully chosen combination of active and passive management styles
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Country ReportDutch Pension funds see merits and drawbacks in concentrated portfolios
Over the past 15 years or so, the vast majority of Dutch pension funds have largely switched from active management to some form of index investing. But some are now going back to active management and towards more concentrated portfolios.
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Special ReportBoom or bust? The state of play for net zero indices
Paris-aligned benchmarks have underperformed recently, driving asset owners to think more about customised and active alternatives
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Special ReportLimelight falls on ETFs as investors seek better returns
Faced with volatile market conditions, the ETF market has become increasingly attractive. Lynn Strongin Dodds reports
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Special ReportThe index revolution: From benchmarking to bespoke solutions
Index providers shift their offering as a wholesale revolution of the industry gathers pace
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Special ReportCase study: PenSam switches to active strategies using new carbon budget benchmark
Henrik Lorin Rasmussen talks tracking error, tech tilts and the challenge of achieving impact in listed equities
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AnalysisIPE Netherlands Briefing: PFZW switches to active management
Plus: Caterpillar divestment; French government debt
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NewsPFZW’s shift to active equity strategy leads to termination of BlackRock
The Dutch pension fund for healthcare workers replaced BlackRock, LGIM and AQR with Robeco, Man Numeric, Acadian, Lazard, Schroders, M&G and UBS AM
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NewsGerman national standardisation body awards first OCIO mandate to Berenberg, Lurse
DIN awards first outsourced chief investment officer mandate to Berenberg and Lurse
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Special ReportNorway: A sovereign wealth fund under scrutiny at home and abroad
Besides a review of its active management, Norway’s giant oil fund has come under fire over its investments in Israel
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AnalysisIPE Nordic Briefing: Independent review for active management of Norway’s SWF
Plus: Another Danish pension fund joins partnership to expand the Danish armed forces’ barracks
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NewsDutch public transport fund trims concentrated equity holdings
Pensioenfonds Rail & OV has been running an actively managed concentrated portfolio since 2010, but recent performance has lagged substantially
