PSP Investments Names Infrastructure, Clean-Tech Boss Patrick Charbonneau as CIO

Charbonneau has been president and CEO of PSP subsidiary Canada Growth Fund Investment Management, which named Yannick Beaudoin as his successor.

Patrick Charbonneau

Canada’s Public Sector Pension Investment Board announced Thursday the promotion of Patrick Charbonneau to CIO. Charbonneau succeeds Eduard van Gelderen, who departed the fund last October.

Van Gelderen joined FCLTGlobal as head of research last December.

Charbonneau’s appointment as the investment chief of the C$264.9 billion ($184.23 billion) pension fund is effective February 3. He is currently the president and CEO of Canada Growth Fund Investment Management, the investment manager of the Canada Growth Fund, a C$15 billion subsidiary of PSP Investments that makes clean-technology investments in Canada.

Charbonneau will be responsible for the fund’s portfolio design, beta management activities, overall investment strategy and treasury functions, according to a statement from PSP.

Want the latest institutional investment industry
news and insights? Sign up for CIO newsletters.

“The appointment of Patrick Charbonneau as CIO reflects our ongoing commitment to strategic leadership and investment acumen,” said Deborah K. Orida, president and CEO of PSP Investments, in a statement. “Patrick is an exceptional leader with a deep understanding of our mission and priorities. His expertise and vision will strengthen PSP’s ability to deliver long-term value for our beneficiaries and advance our strategic objectives in the years ahead.”

Charbonneau was at PSP Investments from 2006 to 2023, moving from managing director to senior managing director to head of infrastructure investments. In 2023, he was named president and CEO of CGFIM, which was established that year.

Yannick Beaudoin

Succeeding Charbonneau as president and CEO of CGFIM on February 3 will be Yannick Beaudoin, PSP also announced. Beaudoin joined PSP Investments’ natural resources team in 2012. Before his appointment to CFGIM, Beaudoin was managing director, natural resources.

Beaudoin will now be responsible for the investment strategy and execution of the Canada Growth Fund, which has made C$2 billion in commitments since inception. The CGF aims to invest in Canadian companies and technologies that can support the country’s path to achieving a low-carbon economy.

“Yannick’s experience and successful track-record—building direct investment platforms, working with entrepreneurs, and managing a diversity of stakeholders—positions him well to lead CGFIM,” Orida said in the statement. “Since CGFIM’s inception, Patrick has been instrumental in quickly setting up CGFIM and ensuring it was active quickly, operates at arm’s length from government, and committing capital through fiscally prudent investment decisions. Yannick and the CGFIM team will continue to build on this momentum and lead the organization into the next stage of its maturity and impact.”

PSP Investments manages the pension funds for the Canadian Forces, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Reserve Force, a total of more than 900,000 beneficiaries. PSP Investments returned 7.2% in fiscal 2024 and 7.9% over the previous five-year annualized period.

In addition to its 13% infrastructure allocation, PSP allocated 42.2% of its portfolio to public equities, 15.3% to private equity, 13% to infrastructure, 10.3% to real estate, 9.9% to credit, 5.7% to natural resources and 0.9% to a complementary portfolio, as of fiscal year 2024, the period ending March 31, 2024.

Related Stories:

PSP Investments CIO van Gelderen Set to Depart

PSP Investments Names Eduard van Gelderen CIO

PSP Investments Returns 7.2% in Fiscal Year 2024

Tags: , , , , ,

US Pension Plan Managers Split on Primary Benefit of Private Assets

An Ortec Finance survey sheds light on what pension fund executives expect in the coming years.



As an increasing share of pension funds increase their allocations to private markets, plan managers are split on the benefit these assets have in their portfolio. Most pension fund executives also expect distributions from private equity, which have been lower in recent years, will increase over the next three years.
 

According to a survey from Ortec Finance B.V., which interviewed pension fund executives in the U.S. about their expectations for the next three years, approximately 74% said they expect higher distributions from their private equity managers. Just 12% said they expect distributions to be lower, and 14% said they will be unchanged. Out of the 74% who anticipated higher distributions, 38% said they would be much higher, while 36% said they would be slightly higher. 

The expectation of future distributions is shaping these pension managers’ pacing strategies, as they have to strategize how much to allocate into private assets like private equity and private credit. Approximately 90% of respondents said their views on distributions are impacting their pacing strategies. Of these respondents, 64% said their view of distributions will have a slight impact on their pacing strategy, while 26% say it will have a considerable impact.  

Pension plan managers had a range of opinions on the primary benefit that private market assets bring to their portfolios. Approximately 40% said the returns and the illiquidity premium were the most important reasons for investing in private assets. Diversification was the most important reason cited by 34% of respondents, while 26% said inflation protection was most important.  

Want the latest institutional investment industry
news and insights? Sign up for CIO newsletters.

Most pension managers responding to the survey considered a private assets allocation between 20% and 40% as reasonable. 


“We see with plans that navigating their private equity distributions and commitments is representative of the balancing act between liquidity and the varying pros of private asset classes,” said Richard Boyce, Ortec’s managing director for North America, in a statement. “The survey points towards a growing belief that distributions for private equity are expected to increase in the future, which is a positive expectation showing that plans are about to reap the benefits from illiquidity premium.” 

Ortec Finance partnered with research firm PureProfile for the survey, in which 50 senior pension fund executives at public, corporate, endowment and multi-employer plans in the U.S. were interviewed. The total value of those funds’ assets under management was $670.4 billion in November 2024.  

Related Stories: 

Public Pension Funds Remain in ‘Fragile State,’ per Equable Report 

Private Equity Continues as Top Performer for Pension Plans, Study Says 

CalPERS Approves New Private Assets Allocation in Private Equity Push 

Tags: , , ,

«