The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) has opened up an office in London to give it greater access to investment opportunities in the United Kingdom and Europe.
“Having a team of investment professionals on the ground will enable us to strengthen our relationships with existing partners and to facilitate the earlier identification of new investment opportunities in these markets,” says David Denison, president and CEO. “It will also allow us to better monitor our existing investments.”
The CPPIB has $12.1 billion invested in public companies along with $15 billion committed to private equity, infrastructure and real estate investments in the U.K. and Europe, of which $8.4 billion is currently invested.
This opening marks CPPIB’s second international office following Hong Kong, which opened in February 2008.
To read a related story, CPPIB Makes Inroads in China, Hong Kong, click here.
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A Multi-Manager Approach to Long/Short Investing
Traditionally, long/short investment strategies followed the fundamental method or the quantitative method but now both methods can be accessed through Pacific Life’s Long/Short Large Cap option.
The investment offers access to the insight of two fund managers: J.P. Morgan Investment Management and Analytic Investors.
“We are the only life insurance company offering a multi-manager approach to long/short investing,” says Alyce Peterson, vice-president of marketing services for Pacific Life’s life insurance division. “As we researched fund managers, we found that managers used either one methodology or the other. By having two managers, the two disciplines are employed with one investment option and our clients can benefit from both methods.”
For more about alternative investments, such as long/short investment strategies, click here to read A Trustee’s Guide to Alternative Investments.
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Forex Trading Takes Off
Dramatic growth in trading volumes and a seemingly bottomless well of liquidity are transforming global foreign exchange markets, according to Greenwich Associates.
Its 2008 Global Foreign Exchange Research Study finds that worldwide forex trading volume jumped 36% last year from 2006 among accounts interviewed by the firm, continuing a steady run of double-digit annual growth.
Last year’s 36% surge brings global foreign exchange trading volumes among accounts interviewed by Greenwich Associates to nearly US$100 trillion—a jump that comes atop an increase of nearly 20% in worldwide FX trading volumes from 2005 to 2006 and similar growth the prior year.
Much of this new business is being facilitated by electronic trading technology, which provides institutional, corporate and retail players alike with instant access to deep pools of liquidity at a very low cost.
Investment managers and banks are increasing their presence in foreign exchange trading as they diversify portfolios with international assets, and the market continues to attract new users ranging from hyper-active hedge fund traders to a growing cohort of retail investors.
“For global FX users, we have entered into an era of something close to free liquidity,” says Greenwich Associates consultant Robert Statius-Muller. “Cheap access to liquidity from a broad and growing list of sources is drawing in new participants and encouraging users of all types to trade more, which is further adding to global market liquidity.”
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PBM Settles Drug Switching Investigation
St. Louis-based Express Scripts will pay US$9.5 million to settle a state attorneys general investigation regarding its business practices.
The settlement addresses allegations that Express Scripts engaged in deceptive business practices by encouraging doctors to switch patients to different brand-name prescription drugs and representation that the patients and/or health plans would save money.
The agreement resolves an investigation initiated in 2004 and which did not result in litigation by the attorneys general against the company. Express Scripts says it has implemented and continually refined its procedures to ensure that any drug switches were safe and appropriate, and intended lower costs for both plan sponsors and its clients.
“Today’s settlement completes our effort to clean up the PBM industry,” says Vermont’s attorney general, William H. Sorrell. The settlement is similar to those reached with CVS Caremark and Medco Health Solutions in February 2008 and April 2004, respectively. “Now that all three of the nation’s largest PBMs are under orders from our office and the court to reform their practices, we expect that the rest of the industry will take notice and follow the requirements we have established.”
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Teachers’ Private Capital Gets Global Senior Advisor
Rakesh Gangwal, a business leader and executive, has joined Teachers’ Private Capital as a senior advisor.
He will be responsible primarily for sourcing and evaluating technology and business services transactions as well as provide strategic counsel and portfolio support through Teachers’ offices in Toronto, New York and London.
“We are very pleased that such a well-respected business leader has decided to lend his deep strategic, operational and business acumen exclusively to Teachers’ Private Capital,” said Erol Uzumeri, senior vice-president. “He brings the value of his considerable business experience, expertise and recognized success to our team, partners and portfolio companies.”
Gangwal was president and CEO of US Airways Group and chairman, president and CEO of Worldspan Technologies. He has also worked in various senior-level postions at Air France and United Airlines.