As the novel coronavirus pandemic upended the way businesses operate, investors around the world have been able follow daily market gyrations in real time to see how public companies are being impacted and what the crisis is doing to valuations. What has been perhaps less visible is how private equity firms have responded to the […]
Plan design changes are on the horizon for the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System’s primary pension plan. The OMERS Sponsors Corp. board has approved five plan changes. The first three changes are effective immediately and are tied to circumstances related to the coronavirus. The other two are part of the annual plan review, which were […]
Along with the rest of the globe, Canada isn’t likely to see the V-shaped recovery that institutional investors were hoping for as it stares down the recessionary road ahead. “Canadian activity was also on the softening path even at the end of last year,” says Irene Lauro, an economist at Schroders. “And this is because […]
Canada is providing federally regulated employers with more time to recall employees who were laid off due to the coronavirus pandemic. Under employment legislation, employers could temporarily lay off staff for up to three months if no notice with a recall date was provided or for up to six months or if they provided a notice with an expected […]
While 87 per cent of Canadian employees who started working remotely for the first time during the coronavirus pandemic believe it will have a long-term impact on the way they work, just 22 per cent said their employer has confirmed working arrangements will be more flexible permanently, according to a new survey by technology solutions […]
The International Monetary Fund has sharply lowered its forecast for global growth this year because it envisions far more severe economic damage from the coronavirus than it did just two months ago. The IMF predicts that the global economy will shrink 4.9 per cent this year, significantly worse than the three per cent drop it […]
Along with the rest of the globe, Canada isn’t likely to see the V-shaped recovery that institutional investors were hoping for as it stares down the recessionary road ahead. “Canadian activity was also on the softening path even at the end of last year,” says Irene Lauro, an economist at Schroders. “And this is because […]
Meeting a deadline in the midst of a pandemic seems like a good test of corporate resiliency and, according to a recent survey of Canadian Principles for Responsible Investment signatories that I conducted on behalf of my consulting firm Real Alts, the majority of respondents likely passed. The survey found that almost 80 per cent […]
The Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario is updating its guidance for pension plans around filing deadlines and member communications. The update reflects the government of Ontario’s regulations amending the Pension Benefits Act. The amendments are effective as of June 18 or some period relative to that date, which may mean the regulation changes won’t provide relief to some administrators if their […]
The long-term economic impacts of the COVID-19 s pandemic is anybody’s best guess, as are its long-term health impacts. Emerging evidence shows that, even after recovering from infection, longer-term symptoms such as exhaustion headaches and muscle aches in some patients can last for weeks. In more severe cases, resulting in hospitalization, longer-term consequences can include lung scarring, […]