June 2023

‘InDIAs’: Innovative Retirement Security Bonds for India

By Arun Muralidhar A commonly-accepted retirement goal for a healthy pension is for it to sustain the relatively higher standard-of-living of the latter part of one’s working life throughout retirement. A recent innovation implemented by Brazil in January 2023 might provide a solution to the pension challenges faced by India, and, more importantly, satisfy the key goals identified by the Reserve Bank of India in respect of debt management and a stable debt structure as also self- reliance and financial...

US. DC assets concentrated in a few money managers

Vanguard Group had $1.78 trillion in U.S. defined contribution assets under management at the end of 2022, representing 21% of the $8.43 trillion in DC AUM, based on data collected by Pensions & Investments in its annual money manager survey. BlackRock followed with $1.16 trillion. The five largest managers of U.S. DC assets had 60% of the total and the top 10 accounted for 79%. The five DC managers with the most DC AUM had equity assets ranging from BlackRock's...

US. Pension funds would have $21 billion more without fossil fuel holdings – study

Several public pension funds under pressure to divest from fossil fuel investments would have had as much as $21 billion more over the last decade without them, according to a study by the University of Waterloo released Wednesday by advocacy group Stand.Earth. In the report, The Impact of Energy Investments on the Financial Value and the Emissions of Pension Funds, researchers at the university's School of Environment, Enterprise and Development (SEED) used Bloomberg data to analyze six large pension funds'...

UK pension funds still holding £88bn in fossil fuels, despite increased climate commitments

UK-based pension schemes have more than £88bn invested in fossil fuel firms, the equivalent of £3,000 per pension policyholder. That is according to Make My Money Matter, which has analysed the fossil fuel investments of more than 50 of the nation’s largest pension schemes. Most of these schemes have net-zero targets but are yet to completely stop investing in fossil fuels. While some fossil fuels are likely to be used in a net-zero world, Net-Zero Tracker recently confirmed that no major...

U.S. Treasury partners with CDPQ, managers on sustainable investing

The U.S. Treasury has partnered with Canadian pension fund CDPQ, asset managers Natixis Investment Managers and Ninety One, the Rockefeller Foundation and others to accelerate pension fund and other institutional investment in emerging and developing countries over the next three years. In particular, the new partnership will focus on investing in energy transition and sustainable infrastructure, and will be led by the Investor Leadership Network, according to a statement from U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen. "Today, we are proud to announce...

Alternative funds expect surge in pension inflows

A new study conducted by Ocorian, a global leader in entity administration and alternative fund services, reveals that alternative fund managers are anticipating a significant increase in inflows from pension funds over the next 18 months. The research, which surveyed 100 alternative fund managers across the United Kingdom, United States and Europe, indicates that 36% of respondents expect a dramatic rise in investments from pension funds, while an overwhelming 87% predict an overall increase in inflows into alternative investments from...

CEO of Malaysia’s largest pension fund warns body could divest from companies not committed to ESG goals

Even as Malaysian firms are encouraged to take a step-by-step approach towards achieving environmental, social and governance (ESG) compliance, they should not be disregarding ESG issues, or this could put them at risk of having the country’s largest pension fund withdraw its investments. In one of his strongest warnings issued to-date, Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan, chief executive of Malaysia’s Employment Provident Fund (EPF), said the fund will divest from companies not committed to ESG goals. Speaking at a session on...

The politicisation of investments at US public funds

By Amanda White with Sarah Rundell The attempts by multiple Republican states to restrict where US pension funds can invest is symptomatic of bad governance. Top1000funds.com takes a deep dive into the quagmire of US state pension funds to assess the impact of partisan politics on the ability of CIOs to do their jobs. The analysis highlights the need for improved practices around delegated authority to prevent the politicisation of investments. So much has been written about the rise and fall...

UK. Fifth of savers want oil excluded from their pensions

A growing number of pension savers would like to see the oil sector completely excluded from their pension fund's investments. Some 21 per cent of pension savers say they want oil to be axed from their pension, according to a survey from online pension provider PensionBee. This has jumped from 15 per cent of pension savers last year. Alongside oil, the main investments people want excluded from their pensions are companies contributing to deforestation, habitat destruction and predatory lending. Pension savers also believe...

Shareholder ire takes shine off stock rally for Toyota chairman

The biggest rally in three years for Toyota has shown how a well-timed campaign to promote the carmaker’s EV strategy can pay off, but a dip in support for Chairman Akio Toyoda at a shareholders meeting serves as a reminder of the perils of drawing investor ire. A 13% rise in Toyota’s stock added ¥4.4 trillion ($31.4 billion) in market value this week, after the company shared details of how it plans to catch up in the global shift to...