Comment
IPE’s columnists and guest writers dig into the hot topics for the pensions and investment industries with thoughtful commentary and reaction from around the world
Viewpoint: Opportunities for investing in UK economic growth is aligned with trustee’s fiduciary duty
NEST sees no conflict between a master trust’s fiduciary responsibilities to its members and investment in the companies and infrastructure of the UK
From the editor
Why we need to talk about the birthrate
If you live in a big city like London, and if you look hard enough, you are sure to find signs of a falling birthrate.
Viewpoint
Institutional investors shouldn't be so concerned about equity market concentration
Before the August 2024 equity sell-off, the rising level of concentration in global equity markets had many investors worried for some time, and concentration may well continue to be a feature of equity markets in the near future.
Danish politics focuses on the good life
Pensions and the labour market were the focus of end-of-summer political pronouncements in Denmark this year. If brought into action, some of the ideas could lead to forward-thinking changes to pensions.
Australia's super funds emerge from regulatory shadows
Australia’s A$700bn-plus (€424bn) retail superannuation sector is starting to emerge from the shadow of its profit-to-member peers. It has been only five years since a royal commission published damning evidence of misconduct within the sector.
US court scraps SEC private equity transparency rule
The US appeals court’s decision, last June, to throw out a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) rule intended to give investors more transparency into private funds has sparked a heated debate.
The importance of board decisions in an uncertain world
In the foreword to this new book, the CIO of CERN Pension Fund, Dr Elena Manola-Bonthond, says that, in her experience, investment alpha is scarce and very often difficult to access. It can be costly and its persistence is sometimes questionable. But there are other types of alpha that are more accessible and governance alpha is definitely one of them.
Book review: The Financial Markets of Ancient Egypt – Risk and Return
“If men could learn from history, what lessons it might teach us. But passion and party blind our eyes.”
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The buyout pendulum starts to swing back to the DB norm
Vogue fashion magazine reports that flared trousers and mullets are back after a 50-year absence. They were not a good look even then, but fashion has its own drivers which do not necessarily involve good taste or even practicalities.
Australia's regulator cracks down on greenwashing
The Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) has won its first greenwashing case in a civil action against Vanguard Investments.
The US perspective on a mixed proxy season
Opinion is divided on whether opposition to environmental and social considerations are increasing following the 2024 annual general meeting season in the US.
Italy needs a serious debate about pensions
Italian policymakers are bent on indulging the relatively small but influential minority of Italians that is nearing retirement, but lament that the statutory retirement age of 67 is too high. The reform efforts of past years have been towards reducing the retirement age or increasing flexibility in retirement. The resources employed towards supporting second-pillar pensions have been next to none.
Switzerland’s refreshing bottom-up approach to regulation contrasts favourably with the EU
Switzerland’s bottom-up approach to sustainable investing and ESG reporting rules seems to be travelling in the opposite direction to the path chosen by the EU.
A mid-year stock take on ESG: talk is no longer cheap
It’s halftime for 2024, which offers a convenient reason to reflect on where we are with respect to ESG investing. I’d say the outlook is pretty good. That’s because, as global equity impact investor WHEB Asset Management says, the “ESG tourists – asset managers that stampeded into the sustainability market just a few years ago – are now packing their bags” as the depth and breadth of anti-greenwashing regulation bite.
Why the green transition throws up workforce and pension challenges
Pensions are a hot topic in corporate Germany, where skills shortages and an ageing workforce have led to a war for talent, as well as a renaissance in occupational retirement provision in the fight for workforce skills.
The art and science of investor collaboration in the quest for effective stewardship
In the evolving landscape of sustainable investment strategies, the significance of engagement has become more pronounced in recent years. Traditionally seen as supplementary to investment processes, stewardship has transformed into an indispensable tool for achieving meaningful environmental and social change.
Australian super funds push back on lacklustre energy transition proposals by corporates
Australian and global pension funds orchestrated an unusually vocal tactical campaign against the climate-transition action plan of Woodside Energy, a global oil and gas producer, in the lead-up to its 70th annual general meeting in late April.
How AI is making inroads in America's retirement industry
Artificial intelligence (AI) is starting to gain traction in the retirement industry, even if it is still early days.
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