As a fresh-faced elementary school student in 1977, Aaron Bennett wasn’t quite in the target demographic for the freshly launched Benefits Canada magazine. Still, Bennett — now the chief investment officer at Ontario’s University Pension Plan — has a pretty firm grasp on the concerns that would have occupied the minds of his predecessors as […]
A development backed by the OPSEU Pension Trust is the beneficiary of the largest federal loan to a First Nations economic partnership in Canadian history. The Sen̓áḵw development project, in which the OPTrust has a 20 per cent stake, aims to construct 6,000 homes in Vancouver’s Kitsilano neighbourhood. It has received a $1.4 billion federal […]
Diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives aren’t a new concept for employers — just ask any human resources professional. However, in a changing world marked by growing calls for social justice, many plan sponsors are extending these initiatives beyond workplace conduct and employee benefits into retirement planning, merging diversity with their pension plans’ designs and communications […]
Pension plan sponsors can’t ignore the financial risks of climate change or respond to them with half-baked approaches that allow companies to continue pumping out pollution. To be credible, comprehensive and complete, strategies protecting Canadians’ retirement savings from the unprecedented risks of the climate crisis must include several key elements. A Paris-aligned commitment The Paris Agreement […]
With today marking the second anniversary of the coronavirus pandemic, it isn’t surprising that a pair of articles on the pandemic’s lasting impact were among the most read stories over the past week on BenefitsCanada.com. Here are the five most popular news stories of the week: 1. Two years later: Canada’s DB, DC pension plans weathering the […]
The OPSEU Pension Trust is reporting a net investment return of 15.3 per cent for 2021, a result driven by strong private equity performance. In its 2021 funded status report, the OPTrust said its private equity portfolio generated a net return of 52.2 per cent. By comparison, public equities provided a net return of 12.9 […]
Nearly two years after the declaration of the global coronavirus pandemic and its subsequent impact on the worldwide economy, institutional investors are looking to the future with cautious optimism. Amid a recovering economy and rising inflation, pension plan sponsors are taking a long-term investment view and staying the course in the year ahead, while incorporating […]
The OPSEU Pension Trust is shifting toward responsible investing as environmental, social and governance factors become increasingly more material to returns for institutional investors. “We’re seeing a lot of shifting sands around consumer preferences and expectations,” said Alison Loat, managing director of sustainable investing and innovation at OPTrust, during a session at the Canadian Investment Review‘s […]
Before Alison Loat joined the OPSEU Pension Trust as its first managing director of sustainable investing and innovation in 2019, her experience with sustainability investing had only been peripheral. “Although I did not come from the responsible investing world, I could see the tides were starting to turn. It was clear that a lot more […]
Canada’s largest public pension plans are more heavily invested in private equity than other global public pension plans, according to a new report by British think tank the Official Monetary and Financial Institutions Forum. “What really distinguishes the Canadian model is this large exposure to private equity, which stands out from across the sample, . […]
aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuYmVuZWZpdHNjYW5hZGEuY29tL3RhZy9vcHRydXN0L3BhZ2UvMy8(U2NyZWVuSGVpZ2h0)NzIw(U2NyZWVuV2lkdGg)MTI4MA(T0ZTWVNfUmVmZXJyZXI)(dmlzaXRvcktleQ)U1hKeWtZcDc(dmlzaXRLZXk)RmZCam9EamE){kind=small}