Michel Charron has had a front-row seat for the revolution in the Canadian investment industry’s approach to environmental, social and governance issues. Following the foundation of the United Nation’s principles for responsible investment in 2008, his firm, PBI Actuarial Consultants Inc., immediately signed up. But the concept required explanation for some pension plan sponsors, he […]
Institutional investors that are signed onto the United Nations’ principles for responsible investment had a higher five-year average net return compared to non-signatories, according to a report by CEM Benchmarking Inc. The benchmarking consultancy, which studied the net returns of 42 signatories participating in its database for five consecutive years ending in 2018, found that […]
The University Pension Plan has appointed Brian Minns as its first managing director of responsible investing. Prior to joining the UPP, Minns spent 10 years working for Addenda Capital Inc, culminating a three-year tenure as its vice-president of sustainable investing. In that role, he was responsible for impact investing and the implementation of environmental, social and […]
Employees at two Canadian pension plans are being recognized for their responsible investment achievements. The British High Commission and the Canada Climate Law Initiative named Barbara Zvan, inaugural president and chief executive officer of the University Pension Plan, and Kim Thomassin, executive vice-president and head of investments in Quebec and stewardship investing at the Caisse […]
The majority (86 per cent) of Imperial Oil Ltd. investors voted to defeat a shareholder resolution that the organization adopt a target to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. However, the vote held during the Calgary-based company’s virtual annual meeting exposes a rift between its parent U.S. giant Exxon Mobil Corp. — which owns 69.6 […]
The funding status and confidence of Canadian defined benefit pension plans declined in 2020 amid the coronavirus pandemic and a low interest-rate environment, according to a new survey from RBC Investor & Treasury Services. It found among 122 respondents, 50 per cent reported their plans were fully funded on a going-concern basis, down significantly from […]
The British Columbia Investment Management Corp. is committing to five-year climate-related targets for its public markets program. The pension fund is targeting a cumulative $5-billion investment in sustainability bonds and a 30 per cent reduction of carbon exposure in its global public equities portfolio by 2025, according to a press release, which noted the targets […]
Canada’s pension system was ranked first overall among 15 countries in the Global Pension Transparency Benchmark. It ranked Canadian funds first in governance, citing the “global reputation for superior performance and governance excellence” of Canada’s five largest funds, namely the British Columbia Investment Management Corp., the Caisse de depot et placement du Québec, the Canada […]
Institutional investors, regulators and financial standard organizations are calling on Canadian corporations to adopt transparent climate-risk reporting, according to a new report from the C.D. Howe Institute. The report noted corporate directors have the legal and fiduciary duty to act in the best interests of their companies in developing strategies to address climate-related financial risks […]
The Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec is continuing its investment partnership with MacKinnon, Bennett & Company Inc. in the form of a new joint $150-million investment in late-venture and early growth-stage companies focused on the decarbonization and transition to renewable-energy-powered transportation. The Caisse initially invested in the company in 2016 and again in […]