Since defined contribution plan members will experience a wide variety of market conditions over the course of their working lives and into retirement, it’s important for the strategic asset allocation of target-date funds to be diversified and able to stand the test of time, according to Jon Knowles, institutional portfolio manager for global asset allocation at […]
In volatile market environments, adding real assets to defined contribution pension plan portfolios has the ability to provide diversification benefits and give members a “much smoother ride” to retirement, according to Andrew Knox, managing director of the Franklin global real asset fund at Franklin Templeton Investments. Speaking during Benefits Canada’s 2023 DC Investment Forum in […]
Plotting out a glide path is the most important part of designing a target-date fund — not only does it take members on a roughly 40-year investing journey, but it also has the most significant impact on their retirement outcomes. Glide paths must also address the key risks facing defined contribution plan members, said Satwick […]
The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board says it will meet its goal of holding $130 billion in green and transition assets by 2030, according to a new report by the investment organization. The CPPIB’s current green asset mix was $79 billion as at March 31, 2023, up 17.9 per cent year-over-year from $66 million. “We […]
Climate and cybersecurity are the leading risk factors concerning Canadian pension plan administrators, according to a pension lawyer. Susan G. Seller, a pension and benefits lawyer at Bennett Jones LLP, adds third-party arrangements and commercial real estate risks round out the most pressing categories for federally regulated pension plans. “We’re living in a time where […]
The underlying conservatism of public real estate investment markets can provide an inflation-proof cushion for institutional investors in uncertain times, said Corrado Russo, managing partner and head of global securities at Hazelview Investments, during the Canadian Investment Review’s 2023 Risk Management Conference. Indeed, with debt levels of only 32 per cent, public markets are more conservatively […]
A tight labour market will have to loosen up in order to help reduce inflation rates, said Ilan Kolet, institutional portfolio manager at Fidelity Investments, during the Canadian Investment Review’s 2023 Risk Management Conference. In 2022, inflation severely impacted the dynamic between stocks and bonds leading to a painful year, he said. “[Inflation] increases the correlation between […]
Supply and demand are outweighing the negative impacts that interest rates are having on real estate in the short term, according to Vikram Rajagopalan, senior managing director at Trez Capital, during the Canadian Investment Review’s 2023 Risk Management Conference. Canada and the U.S. are experiencing population booms, he said, noting the Canadian government’s plan to […]
The days of Canadian institutional investors dismissing domestic opportunities for international ones may be over, according to a new research note. In the note, Ian de Verteuil, managing director of equity, markets research and global markets at CIBC Capital Markets, predicted pension funds in Canada have ended a period of shifting their assets to international […]
As institutional investors become increasingly interested in assets supporting the energy transition, they must evolve their assessment processes in order to meet new standards, according to experts. When the Public Sector Pension Investment Board was determining an official strategy around green assets, the team worked to develop a category it calls transition assets — those […]