The Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, together with iNovia Capital, is investing US$37 million in home care technology provider AlayaCare. AlayaCare provides a cloud-based platform for back-office, client and family portals, remote patient monitoring, telehealth services and mobile care worker functionality. The investment is intended to help the company continue its merger and acquisitions […]
Canada’s defined benefit pension plans increased their solvency levels in 2019 and have equity markets to thank, according to Mercer. The Mercer pension health index, which represents the solvency of a hypothetical plan, increased to 112 per cent in the final quarter of the year, up from 105 per cent at the end of the […]
Men and women will have pay equality in 257 years, according to a new report by the World Economic Forum. The estimate is 55 more years than the estimates from past reports. This year’s report found a two per cent increase in the number of women in senior roles, but noted that women’s participation in the […]
Looking back on last year’s investment activity, institutional investors continued to pile into private equity. Globally, commitments to private equity funds jumped 27 per cent, or US$41 billion, in the third quarter, although there were only 201 final closes for the period, down seven per cent from the quarter prior, according to a report from […]
Shareholder environmental activism has been growing in popularity with institutional investors, but is it working? The New York City pension system implemented a boardroom accountability project in 2014, with the intent of improving the sustainability characteristics of its portfolio companies. And, according to a new paper, results show firms targeted by the boardroom accountability project’s […]
Quebec’s government is introducing a bill that would increase leave entitlements for adoptive parents from the current 37 weeks to 42. The bill would also increase entitlements for parents adopting children from outside Quebec from 42 to 52 weeks of leave. In addition, the bill proposes amending current legislation to increase the work income-related exemptions parents are entitled […]
Legislative changes and plan design were among the leading topics in the pension and retirement industry in 2019, with the top three most read stories tackling those topics. Benefits Canada rounds up the industry’s favourite pension stories of the year: 1. Budget 2019: Proposed changes to pension legislation, annuities, CPP 2. DB pensions best option for Canadian employers, economy: report 3. Alberta budget includes […]
The Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec is investing in a $50-million equity raising round for a subsidiary of Quebec hotel operator Le Germain Hotels. In addition, Fonds de solidarité FTQ, iA Financial Group and La Capitale participated in the round for ALT Canada Investment Partnership, which manages 12 Alt Hotel locations in 10 Canadian cities, […]
The federal government is putting a pin in its changes to employee stock options, which were supposed to take effect on Jan. 1. In a news release, the federal finance ministry said it’s reviewing feedback from consultations on the proposed changes and will announce its path forward and a new implementation date in its 2020 budget. The proposed changes, […]
Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has acquired Sinclair Billard and Weld Ltd. and CJM Solutions + Inc., which do business under the name SBW Employee Benefits. The Halifax-based organization designs, administers, markets and manages group benefits programs and defined contribution plans for employers and associations across Atlantic Canada. It also provides consulting advice on employee […]