Mandate roundup: IPE-Quest, UZ Gent, Vanguard, Dimensional, Northern Trust

A European pension fund is seeking a manager to oversee a $100m (€73.4m) US and European high-yield corporate debt strategy, using IPE-Quest.

The pension fund behind search QN1416 did not provide a benchmark, but said it would be hoping for a return of 10% per annum.

The fund added: “We are searching for an experienced direct lending manager. Bank loans experience is fine, but the mandate should explicitly contain only middle market loans and direct lending in the US and Europe.”

No minimum asset under management limit was specified for either the strategy or the manager, but the company should have at least two years of experience and preferably five.

Interested parties have until 15 June to apply, stating their gross of fees performance to the end of March.

In other news, a Belgian pension fund has increased its emerging market (EM) exposure, appointing Vanguard Asset Management in an attempt to diversify its holdings.

The €445m Pensioenfonds UZ Gent, a defined benefit fund supplying first-pillar benefits to civil servants working at the university hospital, has awarded two mandates worth close to 10% of its assets.

Carl Vanlerberghe, a member of the board of directors at the Pensioenfonds UZ Gent, told IPE Vanguard had been appointed to a €9.2m passively managed emerging market equity mandate.

He said the pension fund’s board of directors last year decided to terminate one of its equity mandates, worth about €40m. A part would be committed to EM equity.

“Up till now, there was very little exposure to emerging market equity in the portfolio,” he said. ”The Board wanted to introduce some greater diversification by appointing a manager for emerging market equities for 3% of the total assets. The Board, however, choose to do this in a passively managed mandate.”

Dimensional Fund Advisors was appointed to the second, more sizable actively managed global equity mandate worth €31m.

Lastly, Menzis, a Dutch health insurer, has selected Northern Trust Global Investments to manage its more than €400m passive equity portfolio benchmarked to the Dow Jones Sustainability World Enlarged Index.

The fund is the first custom index mandate to be managed to the Dow Jones Sustainability World Enlarged Index and incorporates additional ESG criteria.

The IPE.com news team is unable to answer any further questions about IPE-Quest tender notices to protect the interests of clients conducting the search. To obtain information direct from IPE-Quest, please contact Jayna Vishram on +44 (0) 20 7261 4630 or email jayna.vishram@ipe-quest.com.