Strategy
Get the latest news on pension fund and investor strategies, plus in-depth analysis of industry successes and tactical U-turns
Latest news
Italy launches new auto-enrolment regime
Move intended to boost pension fund membership
German plan sponsors opt for staged pension de-risking
Liquidity pressures push German plan sponsors towards staged and hybrid pension de-risking strategies despite economic stagnation
AP7 tightens climate exclusions, drops Chevron, Petrobras
Swedish pensions giant accelerates pace of climate blacklistings, ruling out 35 companies in latest announcement
Lufthansa plans buyout take-off abroad to ease balance sheet turbulence
Airliner plans overseas DB pension buyouts to cut balance sheet risk, with Germany firmly off limits
#25 Leaders in Investment podcast: Simon Pilcher, Chief Executive Officer, USS Investment Management
In conversation with Liam Kennedy, Editorial Director, IPE
IPE Nordic Briefing: Danish pension funds keen to invest in defence sector
Plus: Norges Bank Investment Management unveils new strategy plan for the Government Pension Fund Global
IPE UK Briefing: Bond markets react to chancellor’s Budget
Plus: LGPS consolidation and The People’s Pension investment strategy
IPE 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
Small but perfectly formed: Italy’s €1.6bn Fondo Pensione Pegaso
The pension fund for Italian utility workers taps into private market expertise to broaden its investment horizons and boost returns
Are governments finally hearing investors when it comes to climate finance?
Some experts say governments still do not understand what counts as an investment-ready pipeline of assets
Concentrated 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.
Trends to watch in 2026: As stocks defy gravity, bubble fever speculation grows
Stocks seemed to have defied gravity this year, but the latest Bank of America (BofA) Securities Global Fund Managers survey shows that a record 60% of money managers canvassed believe global equities, including the US, are overvalued.
Case study: Soka-Bau builds out private equity
Lukas Doerr, head of portfolio management at Germany’s SOKA-BAU, explains the fund’s private equity approac
Case study: How Australia’s largest super fund diversifies through concentrated portfolios
Mark Hargraves, head of international equities and private equity at AustralianSuper, compares managing concentrated equity portfolios to piloting speed boats
People’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
IPE 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
Dutch 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’
NBIM 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
Swedish 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
NBIM 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
Swedish 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
Case 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
Pass-through voting gains traction
Pass-through voting has been on the rise as asset owners take up opportunities to have more control, but will it strengthen sustainable outcomes or could it weaken collective impact?
Dutch 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.
Border to Coast launches £2.6bn global multi-factor equity index fund
The proposition was launched with support from five of its partner funds: Tyne and Wear, Lincolnshire, Cumbria, Bedfordshire and Warwickshire
PGB switches to fully passive equity investing
The Dutch multi-sector scheme has concluded it is ‘difficult’ to achieve lasting outperformance in liquid markets
Northern Trust AM scoops up APG quant quartet
The team had been made redundant as APG terminated its quant strategy offering last year
DNB reassures Dutch funds on interest rate hedging impact
Dutch pension sector is worried that government bond trades upon switching to defined contribution arrangements could squeeze liquidity and move markets
Schroders ramps up activity in fast-evolving German buyout space
Firm says it recognised the growth opportunity in the German market early on
Dutch pension funds continue to increase interest rate hedges
The increases in hedging ratios come as the moment pension funds will convert DB accruals to DC capital is edging closer
Case study: Caja de Ingenieros Gestion - The rise of smart beta
The Spanish pension provider Caja de Ingenieros Gestion serves more than 215,000 members, predominantly from the Spanish engineering sector, using an investment style based on independent analysis, with a bottom-up approach.
Smart beta pioneer reignites debate on factor timing
Research Affiliates founder Rob Arnott finds ‘most factors look very cheap’ in a new paper highlighting the attractiveness of many equity factor strategies
Viewpoint: Alternative risk premia strategies stand tall amid turmoil
While bond and equity markets have been pummeled in 2022, Alternative Risk Premia strategies have at last been able to demonstrate their diversification prowess. Will this year’s performance restore investor confidence in these strategies after the painful results of 2020?
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