Low volatility continues to be the most popular smart beta strategies of institutional investors, according to FTSE Russell. The company surveyed 253 asset owners in January and February.…
The Public Sector Pension Investment Board’s net assets under management reached $116.8 billion at the of the 2016 fiscal year. Its investments generated a return…
Investors tend to rely too heavily on fixed income to pad returns. While it’s true we’ve been spoiled for 30 years – falling yields have…
In the second post of a three-part series exploring the changing asset allocation among Canadian institutional investors, I examined the changing needs of pension plans…
Since the development of modern portfolio theory, many institutional investors have used mean-variance optimization techniques to help identify their appropriate asset mix. This quantitative approach…
In a year that witnessed volatile markets and a plummeting Canadian dollar, 92 per cent of the plans on Benefits Canada’s top 100 pension funds…
The Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec is investing 200 million euros in Eurofins Scientific, a global laboratory testing services company. Caisse describes the…
Pension investors have always relied on bonds as a steady source of diversification, capital preservation and a hedge for liabilities. But since the 2008 financial…
Climate change and extreme weather events threaten business continuity and, by extension, cash flow across all business sectors. However, as damaging as floods, droughts, wildfires,…
Though there has yet to be a formal agreement reached on how Canada’s largest pension funds will work with the federal government to support its infrastructure agenda,…
Alberta Investment Management Corporation has entered into a strategic financing relationship with Calfrac Well Services, an Alberta-based pressure pumping services provider, on behalf of certain…
The British Columbia Investment Management Corp. (bcIMC) has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire 99.9 per cent stake in Glencore Agricultural Products for a consideration of…
The Public Sector Pension Investment Board (PSP Investments) has acquired a minority interest in Allflex Group from international private equity firm BC Partners. BC Partners first invested…
While divestment has been a buzzword as some investors look to make a social statement, the new frontier will instead be impact investing as responsible investing becomes more mainstream,…
While discussions continue over new requirements around environmental, social and governance factors in Ontario, OPTrust has had provisions in place since 2007, says an official at the…
The dangers of short-term corporate thinking have become something of a cause célèbre of late. In the U.S. presidential race, Hillary Clinton has proposed tax reforms to…
As debate of the merits of hedge funds as an attractive asset class for institutional investors continues, a new study has found their investment performance…
While the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board’s modest 3.4 per cent investment return announced last week will have minimal short-term effects, its investment income will have significant…
The reduction of a home-country bias, especially in equities, and an increase in the percentage of non-market-correlated strategies in investment portfolios are two prominent investment themes…
The Public Sector Pension Investment Board has become the sole shareholder of Isolux Infrastructure, which will serve as the pension investment manager’s new global road…
This week, Dean DiSpalatro, senior editor of Benefits Canada‘s sister publication, Advisor.ca, is reporting live from the CFA Institute’s annual conference. One of the first sessions featured a…
When it comes to embracing risk, Canada’s defined benefit pension plans aren’t just looking at infrastructure. Chronically low interest rates — and the resulting low…
It’s been a bumpy year on global stock markets and at least some plan sponsors appear to be fastening their seatbelts in anticipation of more…
“These Canadians own your town,” Fortune magazine declared in December 2015, referring to the massive infrastructure and real estate investments Canadian pension funds have made…