Market turmoil caused by the coronavirus served as a real-life test for bond funds and their liquidity, according to a new paper from the Bank of Canada. The amount of corporate bonds held by open-ended fixed-income mutual funds is growing, sitting at around 23 per cent of the total market of corporate Canadian-dollar denominated bonds, […]
The Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan is leading a US$50-million series C funding round for Calgary-based 3D robotics supply chain company Attabotics Inc. The pension fund is making the investment through its Teachers’ Innovation Platform, along with existing investor Honeywell International Inc. According to a press release, Attabotics, which implements a combination of robotic shuttles and vertical storage to […]
The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board posted a 5.6 per cent net return for its first 2021 fiscal quarter, which ended June 30, 2020. The quarter saw the CPPIB’s net assets grow to $434.4 billion from the $409.6 billion it held at the end of its 2020 fiscal year, which ended March 31, 2020. The […]
As the global economy slogs through one of the most dire situations in living memory, some predict it will bounce right back to its old self, while others aren’t so sure. Janet Rabovsky, independent investment consultant With lockdown restrictions lifting, Canadians are wondering how quickly the economy may rebound. While none of us have a […]
The rallying cry that China is simply too significant a part of the world’s economy to leave out of a well-diversified portfolio is about to be last year’s cliché. For the moment, the country remains the second largest economic engine in the world, but its stunning growth in just the past few years has investors […]
Over the last several years, a small group of faculty members at the University of British Columbia has been calling on its pension plan’s board of trustees to consider divesting from fossil fuels. As support for divestment grew, the board of the UBC faculty pension plan, which is defined contribution, agreed to assess whether there […]
Institutional investors looking to score potential investments on environmental, social and governance factors now have a new option. Bloomberg is launching its own set of ESG scores, available to its terminal users. Initially, 252 companies in the oil and gas sector will receive environmental and social scores and more than 4,300 companies across several industries will be scored on […]
Looking at public equity market charts for the year so far, many form a V-shape. In these V-shaped situations of rapid decline followed almost immediately by a strong recovery, two very different investment scenarios can prove beneficial, according to a recent blog by Reka Janosik, vice-president at MSCI Research and Thomas Verbraken, the organization’s executive […]
The University of Toronto Asset Management Corp. has received its highest scores in the United Nations’ principles for responsible investing’s annual assessment of its approach to responsible investing. It received A+ marks in all six categories evaluated by the PRI, scoring above the median in each. The UTAM became a signatory to the PRI in […]
Much debate remains as to whether private equity is an appropriate option for members of capital accumulation plans. Canada’s neighbours to the south have been examining the potential legal pitfalls of these allocations. A recent information letter from the U.S. department of labor set forth a framework plan sponsors can use to consider the prudence […]