The British Columbia Investment Management Corp. is aligning itself with other global pension investors by signing a new joint letter calling for long-term sustainability to become a more prevalent concern for corporations and asset managers. The letter was co-signed in early March by three institutional investors — Japan’s Government Pension Investment Fund, the California State Teachers’ Retirement Scheme and […]
Two big players in the investment research space are joining forces. Morningstar Inc., a U.S.-based independent research firm is fully acquiring Sustainalytics, a Dutch-domiciled firm specializing in environmental, social, and governance ratings and research. Morningstar already took on a 40 per cent ownership stake in Sustainalytics in 2017 and will be buying the remaining 60 […]
Globally, many pension funds are divesting from carbon and fossil fuels, while others are staying the course and focusing on financial value and their fiduciary duties Simon Archer, partner at Goldblatt Partners LLP and co-director of Osgoode Hall Law School’s Centre for Comparative Research in Law and Political Economy: Political posturing aside, no one seriously […]
During an educational two days in Montreal, the 2020 DC Plan Summit, on Feb. 5-7, featured a range of sessions diving into today’s top issues for plan sponsors, including financial education and wellness, post-retirement solutions, sustainability, plan design and technology. Is your pension communication message getting through? A look at the different paths to ESG […]
With environmental, social and governance issues becoming more prominent among investors, it’s important to consider what sustainability means for DC plans. Plan sponsors are facing somewhat conflicting objectives, said Christine Girvan, senior managing director and head of Canadian distribution at MFS Investment Management, during a session at Benefits Canada‘s 2020 DC Plan Summit in Montreal […]
While the pension industry has historically thought about the sustainability of pension plans themselves, it’s now time to think about sustainability more broadly, said Kate Nazar, vice-president of strategy and market development for group retirement services at Sun Life Financial, during a panel at Benefits Canada‘s 2020 DC Plan Summit in Montreal in February. “We’re […]
Wrapping up the 2020 DC Plan Summit with his customary flair, Zaheed Jiwani, principal and leader of the DC consulting group at Eckler Ltd., highlighted the pervasive themes through a selection of songs. With Joe Cocker’s “With a Little Help from My Friends,” he noted how the plan sponsor case studies shared real-life examples of […]
To stay on the cutting edge of environmental, social and governance integration, institutional investors have to expand their focus beyond the factors that are material to a company’s operations today and look ahead at what’s around the corner. According to a report by the World Economic Forum, this is becoming an integral part of investors’ analysis. “To […]
As private markets continue to make up a large portion of pension plans’ portfolios, they can’t ignore the risk management of these assets. One issue to consider is implementation, said Nalaka De Silva, head of private markets solutions at Aberdeen Standard Investments Inc., during a session at the Canadian Investment Review’s Plan Sponsor Exchange conference […]
It’s been long understood that asset owners are driving changing behaviours in corporate governance, said Donna Anderson, head of corporate governance in the U.S. equity division at T. Rowe Price Group Inc., speaking at the Canadian Investment Review’s Plan Sponsor Exchange conference in February. One example, she noted, is the tremendous influence of Japan’s Government […]