Home > News > Asset Allocation > Texas Teachers’ Closes Out Year with $1.8 Billion in New Commitments Across 12+ Strategies
Asset Allocation

Texas Teachers’ Closes Out Year with $1.8 Billion in New Commitments Across 12+ Strategies

Commitments primarily focused on real estate and infrastructure.

By Elijah Owens

The Texas Teachers’ Retirement System (TRS) approved over $1.8 billion in commitments to more than a dozen strategies during December, a recently issued report from the pension revealed.

A majority of the capital committed was allocated towards vehicles that primarily focus on real assets investments, such as infrastructure, real estate, and energy. However, private equity vehicles with large buyout strategies received some attention from the $154 billion investor.

Sweden-based EQT received the most capital from TRS, clocking in $450 million across three strategies. The new EQT Infrastructure IV fund, which is aspiring to raise about $9 billion in capital, received $200 million from TRS. Subsequently, two real estate strategies, EQT Real Estate II and a co-investment vehicle, received $100 million and $150 million, respectively.

The investor also deposited a significant amount of capital into Alamo L.P., a separately managed account hosted by KKR that invests in several  asset classes. The SMA received contributions for its infrastructure ($100 million), large buyout private equity ($225 million), and opportunistic real assets ($13.9 million) strategies.

Never miss a story — sign up for CIO newsletters to stay up-to-date on the latest institutional investment industry news.

The remainder of the institutional investors’ December 2018 activity is summarized below:

TRS is currently at 76.9% funded, and it is projected to take 31 years for TRS to reach 80% funded.

Tags: , , , ,

Home > News > Regulation > Swiss Regulator Facing Criticism over Public Employee Pension Revamp
Regulation

Swiss Regulator Facing Criticism over Public Employee Pension Revamp

The OAK prefers a uniform interest rate for the public workers and two other retirement plans, which a lobbying group says is wrongheaded.

By Chris Butera

Oberaufsichtskommission (OAK), the regulator for the Swiss pension plan for public workers, is under fire from pension lobby group Asip regarding planned reforms.

Asip objects to several of the potential changes the regulator is looking to make, particularly the way the interest rates are calculated to determine return on capital for beneficiaries. 

Switzerland has a three-part pension system. Aside from the program for public employees, there is a separate system for elderly, orphans, and surviving spouses, and a voluntary plan for the private sector.

The OAK wants the same rate to apply to all pension programs, which Asip says will kill the flexibility for actuaries, and that the technical interest rate of a pension fund “should not deviate significantly from the risk-free market interest rate.”

Never miss a story — sign up for CIO newsletters to stay up-to-date on the latest institutional investment industry news.

OAK also wants the initial five-year transition phase for this measure gone, deeming it “disproportionate.” The regulator instead wants to move forward with the expert group’s seven-year proposal.

Asip said the organization should wait until April 25, when other proposals from Swiss pension actuary group SKPE/CSEP, will be ready. The lobbyists say they prefer that to a hasty reform, saying it is “not the OAK’s remit to issue a decree telling the pension fund experts which recommendations to make.”

Asip also objected to an OAK risk control proposal, saying the group is “overstepping its authority.”

Last fall, the OAK was given more authority over asset allocation and governance concerns. Although Asip was fine with these changes, it warned that the regulator “does not need any further authority” for a fund’s investment decisions.

Tags: , , , ,

«