Italy’s €18bn pension fund for engineers and architects, Inarcassa, has pulled around €500m from US and technology equities as part of a strategic realignment of its global equity portfolio.
The move is aimed at reducing concentration in US and tech-heavy strategies, with capital reallocated towards small caps, equal-weighted indices and global infrastructure through tactical allocations, the pension fund said in a statement.
Inarcassa has been steadily reducing its US exposure, following a second tranche of divestments from US tech equities of up to €220m in January, undertaken to improve the portfolio’s overall risk/return profile.
The scheme said it intends to benefit from a rotation away from mega-cap stocks towards segments more closely linked to domestic economic activity.
Among first pillar pension funds, Enpam has also adjusted its equity allocation.
The €31bn scheme for doctors increased exposure to global passive equities by €1bn through a UBS mandate, and to European equities, according to its 2025 financial statement.
Q1 volatility weighs on returns
Italian pension funds reported heightened volatility in the first quarter, driven in part by energy market shocks.
Inarcassa’s board approved two new investments in Italian inflation-linked government bonds (BTP Italia) to protect the portfolio from inflationary pressures linked to the energy shock resulting from the war in Iran.
The pension fund also executed a co-investment in private equity in Italy, as part of a tactical response to an environment characterised by high uncertainty.
Inarcassa returned -0.4% in the first quarter of the year, compared with a gross operating return on assets of 7.27% in 2025, according to figures published this week.
At Fondo Pensione Cometa, the €16.7bn scheme for metal industry employees, the sub-fund ‘Reddito’ returned -0.84% in the first quarter, ‘Crescita’ -1.36%, ‘Monetario Plus’ -0.12% and ‘Sicurezza’ -0.73%.
Investments were affected by market volatility and a sharp rise in gold prices, and more broadly, precious metals, Cometa said in its 2025 financial statement published this week.
Fondo Pensione Pegaso, the €1.62bn scheme for utility sector employees, also reported negative quarterly returns. Its sub-fund ‘Crescita’ returned -2.11%, ‘Dinamico’ -1.30%, ‘Bilanciato’ -0.48%, ‘Prudente’ -0.58% and ‘Garantito’ -0.65%.
The €6.6bn pension fund for commerce, Fondo Fon.Te, said investment performance has been “substantially positive” so far this year compared with the final months of 2025.
The scheme plans to increase allocations to private markets in Italy and abroad to meet its strategic targets, and to select new asset managers for the next five years.
