Norges Bank, the manager of the $456.4 billion (NOK 2,549 billion) Government Pension Fund Global, will integrate considerations of good corporate governance and environmental and social issues into its investment activities under an ambitious new requirement set out by the Ministry of Finance.
The A$66 billion ($58 billion) Australian sovereign wealth fund, the Future Fund, is doubling its allocation to “tangible assets” and will soon make its first allocation to the timberland sub-asset class.
A shakeup of service providers is expected at Norway’s $456.4 billion (NOK 2,549 billion) Government Pension Fund Global, as the sovereign wealth fund gains approval to invest up to 5 per cent in real estate, at the expense of bonds, at the same time it looks to fill equities mandates in 21 different regions and sectors.
US public sector pension funds will have to take a radical private-enterprise approach to reforming employee benefits and revising investment expectations if funds are to fulfil their obligations to existing and new employees.
Roger Urwin has stepped down from his position as head of Towers Watson’s think tank, the “thinking ahead group”, to take up a two-day a week advisory position at MSCI Barra. He will continue in his role as head of global investment content at Towers Watson.
Seatown Holdings, the fund manager being launched by the $121 billion Temasek, one of Singapore’s two sovereign wealth funds (SWFs), is not a hedge fund. It is a global investment company with a mandate to invest in stocks and bonds – but its size and private structure can enable it to tap sources of return beyond the reach of its large parent. Simon Mumme reports.