Previews of some stories I've written for MandateWire North America
NYC pension funds prioritise private markets for climate-related investments
January 2024
The New York City Retirement System, comprising of five retirement plans with over $254.4bn in assets, has sharpened its focus on energy transition and decarbonisation investments in private markets. This comes after four of the five plans recently approved higher target allocations to alternatives. Like some other North American pension funds, the city’s retirement system is among a growing number of institutional investors who have plans to advance their climate goals by ramping up allocations to green assets.
Asset owners review active versus passive split amid persistent market volatility
November 2023
Persistent volatility in the stock market has led some North American asset owners to customise their exposure to equities in ways that appropriately reflect their size, investment beliefs, resources and experience with different styles of investing. But as the active versus passive debate rages on, institutional investors find themselves striving to strike a balance between securing an active management risk premium and maintaining access to liquid, low-fee index investments.
Connecticut pension giant increases exposure to private markets in bid to boost returns
October 2023
The Connecticut Retirement Plans and Trust Funds’ historic underperformance has come at no small cost. But the ailing retirement system, which consists of six pension plans and nine trust funds, could be turning the corner on its fiscal woes under the leadership of Connecticut state treasurer Erick Russell. He tells MandateWire how his office is “rightsizing” the $43bn portfolio in a bid to secure risk-adjusted returns for nearly 300,000 retirees.
North American asset owners eye infrastructure for reliable returns
August 2023
As transaction volumes in private equity and real estate dip to historic lows, institutional investors looking to boost returns are sharpening their focus on infrastructure. The asset class, which has attracted tens of billions of dollars in institutional capital in recent years, offers stable, long-term cash flows, often with inflation linkage and generally low-risk capital appreciation.
Real estate investors seek stable income as slowing property transactions dampen total returns
July 2023
As rising interest rates and banking turmoil hit US commercial property prices, increasingly cautious asset owners are weighing the prospects of income generation as a bulwark against the headwinds facing real estate.
Investors show sharper appetite for bonds
May 2023
North American asset owners have been piling into fixed income, particularly higher-yielding securities such as high-yield bonds and floating-rate loans, to diversify their portfolios and potentially achieve greater returns.
Asset owners show mixed appetite for CLOs
January 2023
In recent years, North American institutional investors have increased their exposure to collateralized loan obligations in a bid to reap extra returns and diversification benefits. However, some asset owners have become wary of these structures due to their targeting of leveraged loans amid rising interest rates, heightened market volatility, mounting recession fears and a historically low, yet climbing, default rate.
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