The Swedish government’s plans to streamline the country’s pension system and merge the $8 billion buffer fund AP6 with its larger and more diversified sibling, the $48 billion AP2, have hit a bump in the road. Major points of contention include AP6’s large private equity exposures and staff integration.
Merger mania continues to grip Iceland’s pension sector, but economies of scale and greater efficiency don’t solve the problem of the size of an industry now larger than the country’s banking system and insurance sector combined, and more than sufficient to buy all listed investments.
CalPERS’ Peter Cashion tells Top1000funds.com how the pension fund’s strategy to allocate to climate mitigation, transition and adaptation strategies is allowing it to access an untapped corner of the US market where many investors have retreated because of the policy environment.
The skirmish between the New York City Comptroller and BlackRock over climate alignment of the city’s public pension funds – a fight worth a $42 billion mandate to BlackRock – highlights the complexity and impracticality of aligning climate expectations, reporting requirements and business imperatives.
The $84 billion Alaska Permanent Fund Corporation is weighing the benefits and risks of increasing its less than 1 per cent allocation to cryptocurrency following positive returns for the sovereign wealth fund. Despite the current policy tailwinds, the investor is wary about the asset class’s liquidity and value drivers.
Singapore’s Temasek said while US exceptionalism may be “fraying”, there aren’t many alternative markets that can handle the same volume of global capital. Meanwhile, fellow sovereign fund GIC believes the greenback’s reserve currency status remains solid even though currency swings could spell trouble for foreign investors.
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