TPA: Built on essentials, shaped by levers

As asset owners grapple with the appropriateness of a total portfolio approach for their fund, new ICPM research has outlined building blocks to be considered in the process including some essential “enablers”, like governance structures, and optional “levers”, like incentive architecture. ICPM managing director Adrian Trollor unpacks the framework.

Why traditional investment committees can amplify group biases

Investment committee meetings, a governance cornerstone at every asset owner organisation, run the risk of amplifying group biases and social dynamics, and can push the IC towards recommending more extreme investment positions collectively than the average of their individual views. Bernhard Scherer, head of portfolio implementation at ADIA, unpacks the thesis in a new paper.

Finland’s Elo: Larger equity allocations promise new media scrutiny

As Finland’s pension funds prepare to increase their equity allocations to unprecedented levels compared to global peers, they must also navigate a new and unfamiliar risk. Elo’s chief investment officer Jonna Ryhänen explains the fund’s investment approach going forward and how it will manage stakeholder and media scrutiny as they react to swinging volatility and returns.

Ohio STRS warns of higher US recession risk; prioritises liquidity

The State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio has warned of a “material” increase in US recession risk compared to last year as the fund braces for a wider, “negatively skewed” distribution of outcomes in the next 12 months. It came as the mature plan, which is 81 per cent funded, is tilting to fixed income and new asset classes like liquid alternatives over equities.

PMT talks infra equity and how to balance stock concentration risk

Scenario testing has put inflation risk front and centre at PMT, the Netherlands’ third largest pension fund, and it’s driving the investor to take stock of the inflation protection it gets from infrastructure. In an interview with Top1000funds.com, chief investment officer Hartwig Liersch unpacks the risk, as well as another initiative where it’s balancing concentration risk in the equity allocation without hurting returns.