“Europe is great at discussion and regulation, but rather poor at actually doing business,” says Sweden's AP3 CIO, Jonas Thulin. “The equity market is harsh, and when it votes it walks out the door. This has been happening for a long time in Europe.”
A long-awaited review into Sweden's buffer funds suggests consolidation between the three Stockholm funds – AP1, AP3 and AP4 – stating that the advantages in terms of efficiency and scale outweigh the disadvantages of continued separation.
This time last year, Sweden’s four buffer funds reported the best returns in their history. Fast forward 12 months, and the four funds have posted losses thanks to allocations to equities and fixed income dragging their portfolios down.
AP3’s ability to actively benefit from volatile markets is rooted in a reform process undertaken by CIO Pablo Bernengo, replacing decade-old, separate alpha and beta allocations with a traditional asset class structures but avoiding silos. Active risk and sustainability go hand in hand, he says, and is a 2023 focus.
CEOs at Sweden's four buffer funds link stellar returns to low costs, sustainability and active management.
A roundup of recent institutional investors' hedge fund activity.
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