FIS Harvard 2014

Concerns over private equity leave pension funds wary

Institutional investors are clearly attracted to private equity, but remain wary of the sector for its perceived lack of transparency and ability to be measured, high fees and a sense that they cannot invest into the sector as truly equal partners. “It’s clear that now is a time with a lot of flux in private […]
Simon HoyleOctober 29, 2014
Articles
Sort content by
FIS Harvard 2014

All aboard the change express as Railpen leaves the station

At the end of a corporate review process that lasted eight months, involved 23 meetings of a steering committee and produced 60 working papers, the UK railways pension fund Railpen was left with 422 action items. “We’ve done 224 of them,” Chris Hitchen, Railpen chief executive, told the Fiduciary Investors Symposium (FIS) at Harvard University. […]
Simon HoyleOctober 29, 2014
FIS Harvard 2014

Using a ‘foreign language shield’ to improve investment decision making

Introducing a “foreign language shield” into a decision-making process is a proven way of making better decisions, according to Cass Sunstein, the Robert Walmsey University Professor at Harvard Law School. Sunstein, a former administrator of the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), told the Fiduciary Investors Symposium (FIS) at Harvard University that […]
Simon HoyleOctober 29, 2014
FIS Harvard 2014

ESG factors take centre stage in the evolving world of the fiduciary

The modern responsibilities of the fiduciary investor extend beyond what are perceived as the “mainstream” investment issues to those related to environment, society and governance (ESG) factors. But there is a growing understanding among fiduciaries that ESG considerations are now equally important in discharging their obligations. David Wood, adjunct lecturer in public policy and director of the Initiative for Responsible […]
Simon HoyleOctober 28, 2014
FIS Harvard 2014

The biggest risk for investors is misunderstanding uncertainty

As the focus of retirees shifts ever-further towards objectives-based outcomes, those entrusted with achieving those objectives will have to rethink a traditional approach to managing money involving risk and return trade-offs. Speaking at the Fiduciary Investors Symposium (FIS) at Harvard University, Abdallah Nauphal, chief executive and chief investment officer of Insight Investment, a BNY Mellon […]
Simon HoyleOctober 28, 2014
FIS Harvard 2014

Good for Harvard, good for the world: Why HMC embraced ESG with a passion

Harvard Management Corporation (HMC) signed up to the UN-supported Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) less than a year ago, but the company that manages the $36 billion Harvard University endowment is already moving rapidly to build environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors into every investment decision it makes. Jane Mendillo, president and chief executive of […]
Simon HoyleOctober 28, 2014
FIS Harvard 2014

G20 urged to develop policies to support long-term investment

The Fiduciary Investors Symposium (FIS) at Harvard University has identified several of the key barriers to pension funds, endowments and sovereign wealth funds adopting more effective long-term and sustainable investment strategies, and is preparing a communiqué to the upcoming meeting of the G20 to convey its concerns and its policy requirements. FIS, organised and hosted […]
Simon HoyleOctober 27, 2014