A pair of stories on employee burnout and the ‘Great Resignation’ took the top spots over the past week on BenefitsCanada.com. Here are the five most popular news stories of the week: 1. Expert panel: How employers can help employees struggling with burnout 2. How can employers turn the ‘Great Resignation’ tide? 3. Employers expanding equity compensation programs to […]
The Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec saw overall returns of 13.5 per cent in 2021, its best performance since 2010. By the end of last year, the institutional investor’s managed assets reached $419.8 billion, up from $342 billion at the beginning of the year. The Caisse exceeded its own performance expectations by about […]
A consortium including several of Canada’s largest institutional investors is acquiring an Australian energy network. The Alberta Investment Management Corp., the Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan, the Investment Management Corp. of Ontario and the Public Sector Pension Investment Board have joined a consortium acquiring AusNet Services Ltd. The company, which has infrastructure assets worth about […]
The Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec is recapitalizing a U.S.-based medical services provider offering substance use disorders and mental-health treatments. The deal, between the Caisse and Crossroads Treatment Centers, is expected to accelerate the latter’s expansion into new U.S. markets, according to a press release. Private equity firm Revelstoke Capital Partners, another long-term […]
The Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec is investing $100 million in a subscription commerce platform company. The investment in AppDirect Capital will be used to accelerate the growth of the AppSmart Invest program, a recently launched business-facing online technology marketplace that connects buyers with expert advisors. The marketplace is designed to help subscribing […]
The Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec is financing part of a $400 million loan facility to a mortgage brokerage firm. The loan, co-financed by the Ares Management Corp, will support CrossCountry Mortgage, a lender operating throughout the U.S., as the business pursues an organic and inorganic expansion strategy. CrossCountry Mortgage currently operates out of […]
Canada’s $4 trillion pension sector could enjoy immense commercial benefits by aligning with the transition to net-zero emissions and helping to mobilize $140 billion of low carbon investments per year, according to a new report by Corporate Knights, the Natural Step Canada and the Smart Prosperity Institute. It found Canada’s 12 largest pension fund managers […]
The Alberta Investment Management Corp. is co-investing in a commercial high-rise building in downtown Vancouver. Ownership in the 15,000 square-metre building will be shared with a fellow investor, Toronto-based commercial real estate and asset management firm Starlight Investments. Following the purchase, the building will continue to be occupied by employees of the federal government, which […]
The Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec is planning to completely divest from oil production — roughly one per cent of its total portfolio or about $3.9 billion based on the size of its net assets as of June 30 — by the end of 2022, as part of its new climate change strategy. […]
With bond returns tied to interest rates, it’s no surprise Canadian pension funds are increasingly seeking other ways to boost fixed income yields. Canadian interest rates have been trending downward for the last 30 years, from a high of 10.3 per cent in 1990 to around 1.75 per cent in early 2020, according to the […]