New York City is taking major steps toward divesting from fossil fuels by hiring investment advisors to review three of its pension plans and make recommendations about divestment. Combined, the three plans have more than $155 billion in assets under management, of which about $3 billion is invested in fossil fuel reserve owners’ securities. The […]
CARP is highlighting the need for further protections for defined benefit pensions in its 2020 Ontario budget priorities. The submission noted CARP, formerly the Canadian Association of Retired Persons, supports the steps taken by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario and the provincial government to bolster innovation in DB plan design, as well as reducing red […]
Pension funds ended 2019 on a strong note, with diversified pooled fund managers posting a median return of 2.6 per cent before management fees in the fourth quarter, according to Morneau Shepell Ltd.’s performance universe of pension managers’ pooled funds. Year-to-date, the return was a stellar 15.8 per cent, with both stock and bond markets […]
The Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario is seeking feedback on its approach to monitoring single-employer defined benefit pension plans with benefits that could be at risk. The regulator said it will evaluate risks to pension benefits by their nature, size, complexity and potential impact on all plan stakeholders. It will focus its regulatory resources […]
Unifor national president Jerry Dias and 13 other union members were arrested Monday night in Regina after the union blockaded the Federated Co-operatives Ltd. refinery as part of an ongoing conflict over employees’ defined benefit pension plan. The barricades are another escalation in an increasingly tense labour dispute that saw Co-op lock out more than […]
Pension plan sponsors in Ontario are celebrating a small win. The government is changing the rules so plans with less than $10 million in assets will no longer be required to file annual audited financial statements. Since 1992, plans with less than $3 million in assets weren’t required to file audited financial statements with the […]
The Iron Ore Co. of Canada has purchased a $560 million group annuity buy-in that covers more than 3,700 defined benefit plan beneficiaries and current retirees. The transaction with Sun Life Financial and Morneau Shepell Ltd. represents the largest Canadian same-day deal with a single insurer, according to a press release. “We continue to see these transactions […]
When pension plans have access to a lot of forecasting information, it’s easy to be tempted into straying from an initial plan. Yet sticking to strategy is key, said Duncan Burrill, managing director and chief executive officer of the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. pension fund, speaking at a Canadian Pension and Benefits Institute event in Toronto […]
North American envelope marker and marketer Supremex Inc. is purchasing a $46 million group annuity buy-in through RBC Life Insurance Co. The deal covers 361 defined benefit plan pensioners, beneficiaries and deferred vested members. It comes on the heels of an almost $7 million transaction made in June 2018 for a smaller group of members […]
Four more employers have joined the College of Applied Arts and Technology pension plan’s DBplus. In total, more than 1,000 new members from the Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Toronto, FP Canadian Newspapers and United Way of Greater Toronto are now in the plan, effective Jan. 1. In addition, law firm Wright Henry LLP joined in October 2019, according […]