The COVID crisis ushered in the paradigm shift to the MP3 world, characterized by the unprecedented combination of fiscal and monetary policy responses around the globe. In the time since, there has been an emergence of geographic and economic divergences that haven’t been seen in over a decade. This session will look at how those divergences might play out and what the expectations from the global economy might be going forward.
Expected returns in the 2020s and the post-pandemic Economy
Featured Story
The People’s Pension on volatility and weak demand for long end gilts
Three years on from the UK's gilt crisis, Charlotte Vincent, co-head of fixed income at the £36 billion ($48 billion) People’s Pension, reflects on enduring investor concerns about bond market volatility as the government continues to struggle to balance the books.
Sarah RundellOctober 16, 2025
News
How leading asset owners maintain TPA discipline
Rolling out a total portfolio approach is rarely a linear process, as even its most experienced practitioners warned that without careful resistance to old language, culture and structure, asset owners can easily slide back into the “comfort” of strategic asset allocation. A new report unpacks how leading funds stay disciplined.
Darcy SongOctober 9, 2025
Asset Allocation
South Carolina lifts private equity and credit as cashflow turns positive
The South Carolina Retirement System Investment Commission's improved liquidity position has allowed the plan to tilt its portfolio towards unlisted asset classes, including private equity and private credit. The fund grew fast thanks to funding reform, improved salaries, and positive investment returns and is now looking to boost long-term performance.
Brendan SwiftOctober 7, 2025
FIS Stanford 2025
Real asset opportunities ‘are coming from everywhere’: Macquarie
While the US remains the most entrepreneurial economy, China might now be challenging its technology leadership, while demographics, deglobalisation, decarbonisation, and digitalisation are creating “massive opportunities” in almost every market, according to Macquarie Asset Management.
Lachlan MaddockOctober 6, 2025
FIS Stanford 2025
Why China could trigger a Taiwan crisis without firing a shot
Former US deputy national security adviser Matt Pottinger has warned that China could spark “a very serious crisis” in Taiwan without even resorting to a full-scale war – an escalation he said could occur within the current Trump administration.
Darcy SongOctober 6, 2025
Opinion
Wisdom: The jewel in the dirt-pile of intelligence
In his regular column for Top1000funds.com, Tim Hodgson, co-founder of the Thinking Ahead Institute at WTW, reflects on the dangers of unconstrained action, the limits of efficiency, and why long-term sustainability may depend on knowing when not to act.
Tim HodgsonOctober 6, 2025
FIS Stanford 2025
When states lose the ability to govern, populism rises
Stephen Kotkin, global geopolitical expert and Stanford academic, has warned that there is an “increasing governability challenge in high-income democracies” where government departments face declining capacity to perform core functions due to complex regulatory systems and bureaucratic tasks.
Darcy SongOctober 3, 2025