Investment professionals from pension funds, endowments and family offices in the UK and Europe were brought together for an investment think-tank with leading academics from London Business School and Cambridge University to discuss the latest investment thinking and application to institutional investors’ portfolios.
The academics presented to the investors who then discussed the outtakes and the implications of the lectures with their peers via roundtable discussion.
The highly interactive format, expertly facilitated by Conexus Financial and conexust1f.flywheelstaging.com with sponsorship support from Winton, allowed for the fusion of academic thinking and investment best practice, giving investors an edge in their decision making.
The presentations were:
• Investing in financial assets for the long term, presented by Elroy Dimson
• Hedge fund factors and extracting absolute returns, presented by Narayan Naik
• Incorporating lessons of financial history into investment practice, presented by David Chambers
Asset Classes
London investment think-tank
News
ACERA eyes global, more active approach for $6.6b equity portfolio
The $13.2 billion Alameda County Employees’ Retirement Association fund is planning a major overhaul of its equity portfolio, shifting from a passive US-focused approach to a more global, actively-managed strategy in an effort to boost returns. The shift will result in manager terminations and searches.
Brendan SwiftSeptember 2, 2025
Investor Profile
AP4: Why a dynamic, shorter term allocation is paying off
Volatile markets have provided a rich hunting ground and opportunistic best ideas have come thick and fast for AP4’s new five-pronged global allocation made up of systematic equity, currency and rates, asset allocation, hedge funds/external mandates and analysis. Magdalena Högberg explains the risks and opportunities of the best ideas allocation.
Sarah RundellAugust 5, 2025
Equities
New study flags risk in Dutch pensions’ concentrated stock strategy
Under strict ESG guidelines and pressure to closely engage with their investee companies, Dutch pension funds have developed an affinity for concentrated equity allocations with some owning as few as 65 stocks in their entire portfolio. But the Erasmus University flagged the diversification risk and higher volatility the strategy introduces.
Darcy SongJuly 31, 2025
News
GIC ups US equities allocation despite valuation worries
Singapore's GIC boosted its US equities allocation in the year to March 2025 despite the expectation that high valuations could "provide a challenging backdrop for forward returns”, according to the fund's latest annual report released on Friday.
Darcy SongJuly 25, 2025
Private Equity
TRS eyes threat of retail investors in private markets
The growing amount of capital from retail investors flowing into private equity and real estate has consequences for institutional investors. The private markets team at the Teacher Retirement System of Texas pondered the risks in a recent investment committee meeting.
Sarah RundellJuly 24, 2025
Equities
Rebalancing at UTIMCO: Why investors should worry about corporate earnings
In a recent board meeting, University of Texas Investment Management Co's head Rich Hall explained why he is concerned about corporate earnings' impact on equity returns. He also warned that as consumer and company spending slows, a recession can become self-fulfilling until new facts emerge to break the pattern.
Sarah RundellJuly 16, 2025
Infrastructure
Temasek chases core-plus infra, creates private credit offshoot
The $338 billion Singapore state investor Temasek is contemplating allocating more capital to core-plus infrastructure projects, especially those related to data centres, energy transition and ageing facilities. The fund also spun out a standalone private credit platform called Aranda from its in-house credit team last fiscal year.
Darcy SongJuly 11, 2025
