When the coronavirus pushed equity markets off a cliff, Canadian defined benefit pension plans had to mobilize to address a number of concerns. The Canadian National Railway Co. pension recently shifted towards a more defensive investment strategy, said Marlene Puffer, president and chief executive officer for the CN investment division of the company, at a webinar […]
The City of Toronto has launched a social debenture framework to fund investments in affordable housing, transit and other basic infrastructure, access to essential services and other projects that benefit marginalized and vulnerable Torontonians. The city, which is waiting for more favourable market conditions to issue its first social bond, is the first municipality in […]
With the coronavirus-induced shutdown causing ripples in public and private markets alike, infrastructure assets took a hit in the first quarter of 2020 — and the worst may still be coming. According to data from the EDHEC Infrastructure Institute, infrastructure assets experienced a sharp drop in returns in the quarter. The decline was driven by […]
The Local Authorities Pension Plan is reporting a $3.4-billion loss in an “exceedingly difficult” first quarter, reducing the size of the fund by 6.5 per cent. The LAPP reported $47.2 billion in assets as of March 31, down from $50.6 billion at the beginning of the year. However, it said the impact on the fund would have been […]
With so much uncertainty on the horizon, should pension plan sponsors be preparing to operate in a deflationary or inflationary environment? In the short term, the economic environment will be deflationary, says Hugh O’Reilly, executive in residence at the Global Risk Institute, noting demand is down because people are staying home and not spending. “And […]
The Investment Management Corp. of Ontario is appointing Nick Chamie as chief strategist to lead the organization’s asset allocation, currency management and fixed income strategies within the total portfolio and capital markets group. With more than 25 years of experience in portfolio management, trading and research, Chamie was most recently a senior portfolio manager at […]
Last week marked the beginning of an unprecedented one-year program through which the Bank of Canada is purchasing corporate bonds. The program, originally announced on April 15, aims to support the corporate debt market’s liquidity and “proper functioning.” It involves TD Asset Management purchasing bonds through a tender process on the secondary market on behalf […]
Mawer Asset Management Ltd. is appointing Crista Caughlin as lead manager of Canadian bond, global bond and Canadian money market strategies. Caughlin, who joined Mawer in May, will take over in July from the firm’s chief investment officer Paul Moroz, who’s been acting as interim co-manager of fixed income strategies. He’ll continue to act as […]
The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board saw a 3.1 per cent net return for its fiscal 2020 year, which ended March 31. Rising to $409.6 billion in assets under management, the fund saw $12.1 billion in investment income and $5.5 billion in net contributions. However, the 3.1 per cent return falls short compared to the fund’s 8.9 per […]
The funded status of the Segal Group Inc.’s model multi-employer pension plan fell from 95 per cent to 86 per cent during the first quarter of 2020, according to a new report by the firm. The model’s portfolio is comprised of 55 per cent equities and 45 per cent bonds. Overall, its investments saw dismal […]