June 2026
02Jun

Pension funds manage trillions and most still underestimate their social role: report

Pension funds collectively manage more than US$56tn in assets, serve hundreds of millions of members worldwide, and, according to a new report, most still do not recognize the full scope of what they already do. The International Centre for Pension Management released Social Infrastructure Blueprint: A Roadmap for Pension Funds on June 1, arguing that pension funds function as social infrastructure providers whether they acknowledge it or not. The report said failing to recognise that role carries real institutional risk. Gibbins said aging populations and rising inequality...

June 2, 2026
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02Jun

US. Company Pension Funds Stuffed With Bonds Ease Up on Debt Buying

A key source of demand for corporate bonds may be fading now that managers of company pension funds have more than enough money on hand to pay their retirees. Company-sponsored plans that had struggled in past years to keep up with their obligations in an era of low interest rates have gotten a boost from a decade of strong equity returns. Many plowed those gains into bonds in more recent years as yields rose. The trade allowed managers to lock...

June 2, 2026
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May 2026
29May

Agency Costs Beyond Corporations: Evidence from Pension Funds

By Clemens Böhlen This paper examines the role of agency costs in pension fund performance. Grounded in corporate agency theory, it exploits institutional variation in a unique dataset on the Swiss pension system to assess how differences in monitoring incentives affect investment outcomes. Specifically, I examine the role of the sponsoring company and show that multi-employer funds underperform institutionally comparable single-employer funds by 25-31 basis points per year, in line with weaker governance incentives. Consistent with corporate agency theory, these...

May 29, 2026
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27May

Korea pension giant NPS bolsters operating system to manage risk amid market volatility

Korea’s National Pension Service (NPS) is strengthening its operating system to better manage portfolio risk amid uncertainty in global markets, according to Won Joo Seo, executive fund director and chief investment officer of the pension giant. He said that even though the pension fund achieved a “good” record  18.82% investment return last year, it remains vigilant over rising volatility in Korean and international markets. “Global market uncertainty and transformation are becoming more complex and structural. Competition among countries in security, industrial policy...

May 27, 2026
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22May

Canadian pension fund crosses $793 billion as it weathers geopolitical storm

Canada's retirement giant posts 7.8% return for fiscal 2026, beating long-term sustainability targets as contribution rate cut looms. Canada's largest pension fund closed its fiscal year with net assets of $793.3 billion, adding nearly $79 billion over the course of twelve months despite navigating a turbulent global environment defined by currency volatility, shifting central bank expectations and a late-year equity selloff driven by Middle East conflict. CPP Investments ended the fiscal year on March 31, 2026, up from $714.4 billion a...

May 22, 2026
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15May

Analysis of climate risk reporting across UK pension schemes

By XPS Group 2025 has shown that climate change is no longer a distant risk. It's a force that's already shaping economies, societies and investment markets. While government policy remains fragmented, UK pension schemes remain exposed to the risks of worsening climate outcomes, and to opportunities that arise from a faster transition to a green economy. Our fourth annual Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) review examines how 49 UK pension schemes, representing £420bn in assets, are addressing climate change...

May 15, 2026
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15May

Private Climate Governance of Finance: “Net Zero” Prospects and Politics

By Cynthia A. Williams In 2021, as part of the COP26 climate negotiations in Glasgow, the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (“GFANZ”) was announced. This Alliance of banks, asset managers, and insurance companies, among other financial institutions, with more than $130 trillion of assets under management when announced, was based on a pledge by the participating companies to work towards net-zero status in their businesses by 2050 or sooner. Led by former UK Bank of England Governor Mark Carney, who is now the U.N.’s Special Envoy...

May 15, 2026
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15May

US. Mamdani’s counting on pension restructuring to balance the budget. Will the unions let that happen?

Mayor Zohran Mamdani wants to delay certain payments to the city’s pension funds to help close the city’s multibillion dollar funding deficit. The only problem is that he needs municipal labor unions’ approval to change up their retirement accounts, and some unions are mum about the plan while others outright oppose it. While it’s still early, the unions’ apprehension to immediately get on board speaks to the plan’s politically sensitive nature. The pension restructuring proposal is one of the lifelines...

May 15, 2026
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13May

The largest UK pension schemes are substantially ahead on climate action as smaller schemes risk falling further behind

88% of the largest schemes have a credible net zero implementation strategy compared to 61% on average for all schemes reviewed Almost all schemes with assets above £5bn now target net zero, compared with just over half of smaller peers, averaging 76% across all schemes. Average Implied Temperature Rise remains at 2.4°C, suggesting schemes are still exposed to assets misaligned with climate goals XPS Group, a leading UK consulting and administration business specialising in the pensions and insurance sectors,...

May 13, 2026
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13May

US. Labor unions oppose Senate crypto bill ahead of Thursday committee markup: report

Five labor organizations urged the U.S. Senate to oppose the pending crypto market structure bill, warning that the legislation would expose worker retirement accounts to cryptocurrency volatility. The opposing groups include the AFL-CIO, Service Employees International Union, American Federation of Teachers, National Education Association, and American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, CNBC reported Tuesday. According to CNBC, SEIU, AFT, NEA, and AFSCME wrote in a previously unreported May 9 letter that the bill “jeopardizes the stability of workers’ retirement plans, including...

May 13, 2026
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