Investor Profile
Rediscovering FI at Nebraska
The $27 billion Nebraska Investment Council is conducting a deep dive into its fixed income portfolio, inviting up to 25 current and potential external managers to pitch their best ideas. The process begins by wiping any preconceived notions around the allocation’s role in the overall portfolio and justifying its place as if from scratch. It ends two years later with the issuing of mandates.
Sarah RundellJuly 19, 2019
Featured Story
NY Common allocation review
The $210 billion New York State Common Retirement Fund is considering pushing its return target below 7 per cent as it embarks on a deep dive review of its asset allocation, a practice that comes around every five years.
Risk
Size matters: diversity across factors
The size factor has recently come under attack from smart beta providers because its performance has lagged behind other factors. A common recommendation is to remove size from the factor menu, to give more weight to factors with better performance. But due to its low correlation with other factors, size offers substantial diversification benefits.
Asset Allocation
Evolving the City of Austin pension fund
Amanda White sat down for an hour-long fireside chat with David Veal, CIO of the $3 billion City of Austin Employees Retirement System. They discussed private equity, managing strategic relationships, internalisation and adopting Norwegian investment beliefs.
Sustainability
Improving long-term performance
A confluence of recent research and the evolution in perspective of the Delaware courts presents an opportunity for companies and investors to systematically improve performance while reducing unwanted risk exposures. But investors must make the first move.
Infrastructure
SWFs get creative in infrastructure
SWFs are struggling to source deals in infrastructure as the demand is much stronger than the supply, so they are relying on new ways of investing in the asset class, mainly accelerating early-stage investments in renewable technologies, and with novel partnerships and co-investment structures.
Enrico Soddu and Victoria BarbaryJuly 11, 2019
Governance
Now is the time to professionalise
In this second contribution from the CFA Institute on finance professionals, CEO of CFA Societies Australia, Lisa Carroll, discusses the reform needed in that market.
Lisa CarrollJuly 10, 2019
Sustainability
Holding consultants to account on ESG
Ensuring that investment consultants incorporate ESG factors into their core service provision is crucial for the next wave of responsible investment. The PRI has released a guide for asset owners or what to expect from consultants.
Nikolaj PedersenJuly 9, 2019
Investor Profile
CalPERS prepares for market dislocation
CalPERS' CIO Ben Meng is preparing for a market dislocation by ensuring the $354 billion pension fund has enough dry powder on hand to take advantage of a drawdown. A liquidity management action plan is a top priority for the fund.
Sarah RundellJune 24, 2019
Sustainability
RFK Human Rights achievements
President of Robert F Kennedy Human Rights, Kerry Kennedy, welcomed delegates to its 2019 investor conference by outlining some of the milestones achieved by the organization in the past year. These include criminal legal system reform; suing Colombia on behalf of a journalists’ family; and major advancements in farm workers’ rights.
Amanda WhiteJuly 5, 2019
Sustainability
A guide for trustees for the long term
Last month the book Achieving Investment Excellence, was launched in the auditorium of Dutch pension investor APG. The book is a guide to empowering pension fund trustees to get a good grip on the difficulty of successful long-term investing for pension funds. Top1000funds.com spoke to one of the authors, principal director investment strategy of PGGM, Jaap van Dam.
Amanda WhiteJuly 5, 2019
Sustainability
Improved disclosure on workforce data
The Workforce Disclosure Initiative, which now has 127 investor signatories with $14 trillion, is calling for better company disclosure on workforce data in line with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal 8, which calls for decent work for all.
James ColdwellJuly 2, 2019
Sustainability
Investors’ role in disability inclusion
Four US state treasurers are among 11 investors to sign a joint investor statement on corporate disability inclusion, and are urging others to get behind the cause. The investors, worth $1 trillion, believe companies must to do more to include people with disabilities in the workforce and are urging their portfolio companies to adopt best practice.
Amanda WhiteJune 26, 2019
Asset Classes
Should PE underperformers be avoided?
There is a prevailing view among LPs that once a PE firm has an underperforming fund, the best way forward is to stop committing to future funds. But do outperforming funds that become underperformers deserve consideration?
Wes Bradle and Alex AbellJuly 3, 2019
Asset Classes
A factor revolution in unlisted
In this third and final article on the EDHECinfra/G20 survey of infrastructure benchmarking practices the role of infrastructure investment benchmarks for the purpose of risk management is discussed.
Frederic Blanc-BrudeJuly 1, 2019
Asset Classes
Winter is coming
Investors are preparing for the future and the inevitability that 'winter is coming' by reducing exposure to risky assets, the delegates at the RFK Human Rights Compass conference heard.
Amanda WhiteJune 26, 2019
Asset Classes
UK’s PIC sees strong renewables pipeline
The United Kingdom’s £31.4 billion ($39 billion) Pension Insurance Corporation, an insurance company specialising in securing the liabilities of defined benefit pension schemes, is growing its infrastructure allocation to renewables and student housing and pushing into new markets in the Ireland and Spain.
Sarah RundellJune 20, 2019
FIS Stanford
Rise of the unicorns: venture capital
The increase in privately held start-ups has piqued interest in venture-capital markets. The opportunities are there but investors must realise that technological innovation has changed the game.
Sarah RundellOctober 18, 2018
FIS Stanford
Protecting human capital helps everyone
Investors have plenty to gain from helping to protect human rights in supply chains and managing the human costs during technological disruption and the transition to a low-carbon economy.
Sarah RundellOctober 12, 2018
FIS Stanford
How to follow megatrends to success
The big themes that will fuel growth in coming decades are interconnected and subject to change. An expert panel gave advice on riding societal change to outperformance.
Sarah RundellOctober 12, 2018
FIS Stanford
How the active complements the passive
Investors discuss the various ways that two styles often presented as if they are enemies in fact work hand in hand across portfolios to produce returns.
Sarah RundellOctober 11, 2018
FIS Stanford
CalPERS shake-up may delay PE plans
The surprise ousting of CalPERS board president Priya Mathur heralds a leadership shake-up that could place final approval of an expanded private equity program on hold.
Sarah RundellOctober 9, 2018
Asset Allocation
Relationship built on knowledge transfer
A knowledge exchange between the State of Wisconsin Investment Board and its manager, Parametric, has seen the fund become comfortable understanding the instruments involved to manage a chunk of its total levered allocation in-house.
Sarah RundellJune 12, 2019
Asset Allocation
Spain’s Caixa boosts risk off allocation
In an overhaul of investments impacting almost every asset class, Spain’s largest corporate pension fund, is looking to increase diversification and improve its ESG ratings. It’s decreased equities in favour of US government bonds as part of a strategy to protect the portfolio in a potential downturn, this strategy also includes tail risk hedging, currency hedging and slashing its hedge funds allocation.
Sarah RundellJune 4, 2019
Asset Allocation
Roger Gray reflects on his time at USS
In what will be exactly a decade leading and transforming the Universities Superannuation Scheme investment office, Roger Gray will step down in September. Amanda White spoke to him about investments, governance, the self-possession needed to thrive in funds management, and what’s next.
Amanda WhiteMay 30, 2019
Asset Allocation
Illinois’s innovative first
Illinois State Treasury is planning a new $700 million allocation to student loans in the first investment of its kind for any US state treasury. The $32 billion state treasury has never been scared to innovate.
Sarah RundellMay 15, 2019
Strategy
Tough times greet new CalPERS CIO
Ben Meng isn’t easing into his role. The new CIO of CalPERS faces three new board members, a stressed private equity program and executive turnover, all under the pressure of a 70 per cent funded status and a maturing membership at the $340 billion fund.
Sarah RundellFebruary 26, 2019
Strategy
Value lies where precious data is stored
Organisations across the globe are collecting data, analysing and re-analysing it more and more every day. As this trend continues, data infrastructure – tangible or intangible – becomes increasingly attractive. Canada’s OPTrust cites this reality as the rationale behind the EdgeCore partnership. It thinks data is its own asset class.
James DavisFebruary 25, 2019
Strategy
Asset owners’ climate-change advice
A new guide, Climate Change for Asset Owners, provides case studies and other practical advice for how to get investor organisations focused on climate change, how to craft a related investment strategy and how to implement it. The publication includes content from 10 asset owners.
Amanda WhiteFebruary 6, 2019
Strategy
Dutch trio launches PE co-investment
The Netherlands’ Achmea Investment Management, Blue Sky Group and SPF Beheer have teamed up on a joint investment platform designed to lower fees and expand opportunities in private equity. Jos van Gisbergen, senior portfolio manager for private equity at Achmea, explains how it works.
Sarah RundellJanuary 31, 2019