All Features articles – Page 275
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Features
Minister with a mission
How does a deeply religious man who wanted to become a missionary grow into one of the most powerful politicians in the Netherlands? Aart-Jan de Geus is the Dutch secretary for social affairs and employment and oversees the country’s pensions and social security reforms. We take a closer look at ...
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Features
Swiss MM starts to motor
One particular feature of the Swiss pension fund market has been a big driver in the development of multi-manager investment. “Swiss pension funds have been in the vanguard when it comes to hedge fund investment, with some very substantial allocations. And hedge fund investment almost always uses the MM approach”, ...
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Features
SBA to overhaul strategy
The €11bn SBA Artsenpensioenfonds (Pension Funds for General Practitioners and Medical Specialists) says it will overhaul its investment strategy following the departure of three senior staff in a restructuring. The scheme said it planned to “implement a passive management strategy” for its Pan-European and US large-cap equity portfolios, which represents ...
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Features
Doing it in phases
There is no doubt that reallocating millions in portfolio assets carries huge risks. But while transition managers can smooth the more complex asset shifts and keep costs and dangers to a minimum, there are often less expensive ways of dealing with change, say consultants. Typically, pension funds are turning to ...
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Features
Working to standards
Eighteen months ago, consultants and managers Russell kick-started the process of establishing a standard for measuring portfolio performance during transitions. The result is the T Standard, which sets out the success and performance of a transition. “From the word go, we didn’t want to say that Russell says this is ...
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Features
Asia Pacific economies race ahead
Sentiment throughout the Asia-Pacific region is swinging upwards, as rising markets and inexpensive debt provide a compelling combination for cross-border investors. Those with existing portfolios are now realising attractive returns. However, risk fundamentals such as transparency, liquidity and efficiency remain challenges, so investors in the region should fasten their seatbelts ...
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Features
Tapping into currency alpha
In years gone by, whenever we raised the subject of currency management with a group of pension plan trustees, it often evoked a very emotional response. The general feeling was that active currency management is a form of speculation that should not be permitted by pension plan trustees that have ...
