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☆ Investor who helps manage the largest sovereign wealth fund discusses strategy and biggest fears
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Jason Gewirtz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The "Government Pension Fund" as it is widely known helps back up Norway's government spending. The fund was started in 1996 after massive offshore energy reserves were discovered off Norway's coast. A big part of the fund's concentration in recent years has been on renewable energy. Right now the Government Pension Fund has a mandate to invest at least two percent of assets in renewable energy. But Tronde, who's fund has stakes in more than 9,000 companies, is not overly concerned about all these threats.

☆ U.S. financial regulators to tighten rules on non-bank firms, risk assessment
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( David Lawder | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON, April 21 (Reuters) - The Financial Stability Oversight Council on Friday proposed guidance to make it easier to designate non-bank financial institutions for regulatory supervision and new procedures to better identify and respond to financial system risks. U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has raised concerns about non-bank financial institutions, including hedge funds, private equity firms and pension funds as a potential source of financial instability because of a lack of supervision and. The new guidance removes some "inappropriate hurdles" to designating non-bank firms and replaces them with a process that allows for firms under review to have significant engagement with regulators. RISKS, VULNERABILITIESFSOC's proposed new risk assessment framework aims to enhance the council's ability to address financial stability risks by reviewing a broad range of asset classes, institutions and activities, according to a Treasury fact sheet. The new framework also specifies vulnerabilities that FSOC and member regulators would consider when evaluating potential stability risks.

☆ Brazil's government takes measures to boost consumer and capital market credit
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

BRASILIA, April 20 (Reuters) - Brazil's government announced a package of 13 measures on Thursday to ease consumer access to credit and reduce associated costs in the capital and insurance markets, a move the new leftist administration hopes will boost investment and revitalize a slowing economy. Brazil's Secretary of Economic Reforms, Marcos Barbosa, said the measures aim to strengthen the credit market in the long term, paving the way for the country's capital market to become as robust or larger than the 5 trillion reais ($988 billion) banking market. The package includes a decree to allow the issuance of bonds with an income tax exemption for investments in sectors such as healthcare, education, and public security. The government also plans to introduce legislation to enhance safeguards for minority investors in the capital market against harm caused by unlawful actions of controlling shareholders and administrators. Finance Minister Fernando Haddad on Monday had indicated that the package would also feature a measure to lower revolving credit card rates.

☆ The messy, high-stakes world of private equity's fossil-fuel dilemma
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Rebecca Ungarino | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +13 min

Most major private-investment firms are working to cut down on emissions their portfolio companies send into the atmosphere. It's also set targets to get three-quarters of its majority-owned power-and-energy portfolio companies' emissions that they generate directly and indirectly covered by Paris-aligned climate goals by 2025. A growing number of private-equity firms' pension-fund limited partners are under pressure themselves to either invest around environmental, social, and governance matters or shun investing through those lenses altogether. Firms' plans with their upstream investments tend to draw the most attention because they're involved in drilling for new oil and gas. If you're a private-equity firm and you continue to make new upstream investments, I don't believe you have a Paris-aligned plan.

☆ EQT tries tricky private-market fundraising puzzle
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, April 20 (Reuters Breakingviews) - When one pot of cash seems to be running low, it’s rational to seek another. That’s why EQT’s (EQTAB.ST) boss Christian Sinding is right to try raising money from rich individuals, rather than just institutions. The $24 billion Swedish private equity and real estate investor said alongside first-quarter results on Thursday that it was preparing fund structures for private wealth investors. This usually refers to people who are well-heeled but not deep-pocketed enough to have a dedicated private wealth management firm, a family office, looking after their money. EQT itself spooked shareholders in January, when it said that the fundraising for its new 20 billion euro EQT X vehicle was not happening as fast as analysts had predicted.

☆ UK growth hinges on more than a new pension giant
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Francesco Guerrera | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

Politicians and financiers think a consolidation of the country’s pension funds would breathe new life into its stocks, startups and infrastructure. Meanwhile, there is no doubt that UK defined-benefit pension funds, company-sponsored plans that promise a specific payment upon retirement, have moved away from UK equities. The proposals also entail creating a 100 billion pound pension fund, modelled on the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, a retirement giant with $536 billion assets under management. Overall, some 19% of these funds’ assets are in UK stocks, according to the Pensions Policy Institute. If UK assets can yield the risk-adjusted returns offered by other assets, pension funds will join in too.

☆ $70 billion Los Angeles retirement plan says higher rates may 'change everything' and portfolio moves are coming
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Eric Rosenbaum | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

A year into the most significant period of Federal Reserve rate hikes in decades, you might think investors had already cemented their investment portfolio strategies for a higher interest rate world. According to LACERA's 2022 annual report, its investments were split between roughly $24 billion in public equities, $19 billion in bonds, $13 billion in private equity, $6 billion in real estate, $4 billion in hedge funds and $1 billion in real assets. Last year was the first in the prior three fiscal years that the pension fund's investment portfolio lost money. By contrast, investment returns of 25.2% in 2021 were far ahead of the 7% percent, which LACERA attributed to the strong performance from global equity and private equity assets. A shift to more fixed income among top investors will flow through to the "whole economy," Grabel said.

☆ Factbox: What's in Republican McCarthy's debt-limit spending cut package?
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

SPENDING RESTRAINTSThe plan would cut a wide swath of government spending to last year's levels, a decrease of about 9%. It is not clear how the spending caps would affect specific government operations, from air traffic control to housing to the military. The caps would reduce spending in real terms as they would not keep up with projected inflation and population growth. CLAW BACK UNSPENT COVID-19 FUNDSThe plan would cancel the remaining funds from the $5.2 trillion Congress approved between 2020 and 2022 to fight COVID-19. TIGHTEN WORK REQUIREMENTSThe plan would stiffen work requirements for participants in some antipoverty programs.

☆ Factbox: What's in Republican McCarthy's debt-limit spending cut package
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

At that point, Congress would have to address the issue again, as the 2024 presidential campaign heats up. Those caps would effectively serve as spending cuts, as they would not keep up with projected inflation and population growth. Congress agreed to similar spending caps in 2011 during another debt-ceiling standoff, though it often did not adhere to them in the following years. CLAW BACK UNSPENT COVID-19 FUNDSThe plan would cancel the remaining pots of money from the $5.2 trillion Congress approved between 2020 and 2022 to fight COVID-19. According to the White House, the remaining money amounted to less than $80 billion in January and is likely lower now.

☆ Upfront's Mark Suster has become the star of LA's booming startup scene. Not everyone is a fan.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Ben Bergman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +29 min

"I have worked with more than 50 VCs and nobody comes close to what it is like to work with Mark Suster," said a founder backed by Suster. "Mark and the Upfront Summit helped put LA tech and investing on the map," said Jeffrey Katzenberg, the cofounder of DreamWorks and WndrCo. Several years ago, a founder whose startup Suster invested in was in a conference room rehearsing their presentation for the Upfront Summit. If you're going to put him on your board, you're letting the fox guard the henhouse. "If you're going to put him on your board, you're letting the fox guard the henhouse."

NEW YORK, April 14 (Reuters) - Societe Generale SA (SOGN.PA) agreed to pay $105 million to settle U.S. investor litigation accusing the French bank of violating antitrust law by conspiring with rivals to rig Euribor, a key European interest rate benchmark. A preliminary settlement was filed late Friday with the U.S. District Court in Manhattan, and requires a judge's approval. Societe Generale denied wrongdoing in agreeing to settle, court papers show. The case is Sullivan et al v. Barclays Plc et al, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No. Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York, Editing by Rosalba O'BrienOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Zero Carbon Capital just reached third close on its $37 million fund dedicated to hardware and science-based companies. We got an exclusive look at the LP deck it used to raise from Isomer and Extanti
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( Tasmin Lockwood | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Zero Carbon Capital reached third close on its £30 million ($37 million) fund. We got an exclusive look at the 10-slide LP deck the climate tech firm used to raise the funds. UK-based Zero Carbon Capital has closed £13 million, around $16.2 million, of its £30 million, about $37.5 million, second fund. Zero Carbon Capital wants to be the first check to lead pre-seed and smaller seed rounds, with tickets ranging £100,000 to £1 million. Isomer has previously backed hardware funds but Zero Carbon Capital is its first dedicated climate fund.

Unions - and protesters - will pressure Macron not to promulgate the law, and try to find another way out. The Council's decision is expected late afternoon or early evening, likely after 1600 GMT. It could strike down the bill, but this is something it has rarely done and constitutional experts and government sources see this as unlikely. Political observers say the widespread discontent over the government's reform could have longer-term repercussions, including a possible boost for the far right. "I'm not that optimistic about the Constitutional Council's decision," far-right leader Marine Le Pen, who opposes the pension legislation, said earlier this week.

NEW YORK, April 14 (Reuters) - Societe Generale SA (SOGN.PA) agreed to pay $105 million to settle U.S. investor litigation accusing the French bank of violating antitrust law by conspiring with rivals to rig Euribor, a key European interest rate benchmark. A preliminary settlement was filed late Friday with the U.S. District Court in Manhattan, and requires a judge's approval. If approved, the accord would mean investors have obtained $651.5 million of settlements with seven banks. Societe Generale denied wrongdoing in agreeing to settle, court papers show. The case is Sullivan et al v. Barclays Plc et al, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No.

Companies HP Inc FollowApril 11 (Reuters) - A U.S. appeals court on Tuesday revived a lawsuit alleging HP Inc (HPQ.N) defrauded shareholders by secretly using unprofitable tactics to boost sales of its printing supplies in 2015 and 2016. Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a judge's ruling dismissing the lawsuit as filed too late. The SEC said in 2020 that some HP regional managers used incentives to accelerate sales they expected to materialize in later quarters. It also said sales managers sold steeply discounted supplies to distributors known to resell HP products outside their own territories, "cannibalizing" sales from local distributors and violating company policy. Circuit Court of Appeals, No.

☆ Sweden's Alecta axes CEO after US bank losses
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

OSLO/STOCKHOLM, April 11 (Reuters) - Swedish pension fund Alecta on Tuesday fired its CEO Magnus Billing with immediate effect following the recent announcement of large losses from investments in several U.S. banks. Alecta, Sweden's largest pension fund provider, last month said it had lost 19.6 billion Swedish crowns ($1.87 billion) from its shareholdings in First Republic Bank (FRC.N), Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank. "The losses have severely damaged the trust in Alecta's asset management," the company said in a statement. "The board has concluded that Alecta needs new leadership in order to implement the necessary changes within the asset management and re-establish trust." The pension provider last week announced the replacement of its head of stock market asset management.

☆ You Can’t Throw the Bums Out if You’ve Voted With Your Feet
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-10 | by ( Allysia Finley | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

There’s a great deal of ruin in a nation, as Adam Smith once observed. Brandon Johnson ’s victory in last week’s Chicago mayoral race is a reminder that no matter how bad things get, they can always get worse. Its high crime and taxes are driving away businesses like Citadel, Boeing and Tyson Foods. Despite some of the highest property taxes in the country, its pension funds are in a death spiral. A net 175,000 people left Cook County between 2020 and 2022.

☆ IMF calls on global financial regulators to step up supervision of nonbank financial institutions
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-10 | by ( Jenna Mcnamee | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: 1 min

The news: In a recent blog post , the International Monetary Fund (IMF) stressed the risks that nonbank financial institutions (NBFIs) pose to the financial system and warned that their lack of regulatory oversight could cause the next global financial crisis. Global acceleration: Since the 2008 financial crisis, the growth of NBFIs—institutions like pension funds, insurers, and hedge funds—has exploded. As of 2021, NBFIs held about $239 trillion in assets, according to the Financial Stability Board, or nearly half of global financial assets.

Persons: NBFIs Organizations: International Monetary Fund

[1/4] French railway workers on strike demonstrate against BlackRock company inside an office building as part of the eleventh day of nationwide strikes and protests against French government's pension reform, in Paris, France, April 6, 2023. REUTERS/Stephanie LecocqPARIS, April 6 (Reuters) - Dozens of trade unionists railing against French President Emmanuel Macron's pension overhaul briefly invaded the central Paris building in which U.S.-based investment firm BlackRock has an office, chanting slogans and setting off firecrackers. The union action in the historical Centorial building near Paris' Grand Boulevards area, targetted BlackRock because of its private pension fund activity, protester Françoise Onic, 51, told Reuters. Thomson Reuters has an office in the same building. The government says change is needed to keep the pension system in the black.

Paris/London CNN —Demonstrators forced their way into the building that houses BlackRock’s office in Paris Thursday, taking their protest against the government’s pension reforms to the world’s biggest money manager. Videos shared on social media showed protesters entering the Centorial office block, located near the Opéra Garnier opera house, holding red flares and firing smoke bombs. BlackRock’s office is located on the third floor. Workers invade the Centorial building that houses BlackRock's office in Paris on April 6, 2023. BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, has played no part in the pension reforms.

☆ Shadow banks: The other financial firms worrying investors and regulators
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( Anna Cooban | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

London CNN —The International Monetary Fund warned this week of “vulnerabilities” among so-called non-bank financial institutions, saying global financial stability could hinge on their resilience. The term encompasses financial firms, other than banks, that provide all manner of financial services, including lending to households and businesses. The sector has grown strongly since the global financial crisis in 2008, with its asset base expanding by 7% a year on average, according to FSB data. Non-banks that provide credit are known as “shadow banks,” although the term is often used imprecisely to mean all non-banks. Shadow banks now make up about 14% of the world’s financial assets and, like many non-banks, operate without the same level of regulatory oversight and transparency as banks.

☆ US World Bank nominee Banga endorses lending expansion, pledges more
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( David Lawder | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

"That's good, we should do it," Banga said of the $5 billion lending expansion plan proposed by departing World Bank President David Malpass. But he said that to raise the trillions of dollars needed annually to reach 2030 and 2050 global emissions reduction goals, the World Bank needs to help catalyze private capital. The World Bank cannot do this alone," he said. Banga is now in the final stages of the World Bank executive board's selection process after emerging from a March nomination period as the sole candidate. He is expected to be confirmed as World Bank president by early May.

Companies BlackRock Inc FollowBOSTON, April 5 (Reuters) - New York City pension leaders will press external fund managers, including private market fund managers, on Wednesday for details on their plans to cut greenhouse gas emissions, officials said. Public, and private market managers that have faced less pressure on climate issues to date, run most of the roughly $240 billion in New York City pension fund assets. Boards overseeing the majority of that money have approved new expectations for those managers, New York City Comptroller Brad Lander said, which will be announced on Wednesday. Lander urged BlackRock Inc last fall to take stronger environmental steps such as phasing-out high emitting assets. Lander said the plans recently approved by New York City pension boards extend similar calls to other external managers, including those that manage the 25% of pension assets held in fixed income and the 25% in private markets.

ORLANDO, Florida, April 5 (Reuters) - When U.S. government bonds become the epicenter of global market volatility, investors' room for taking on additional risk shrinks, sucking the oxygen out of their risk budget. The shock blindsided speculative investors who had been positioned for higher U.S. interest rates and yields. The full extent of the turmoil - hedge funds were among those who got crushed - will become clearer as first-quarter readouts emerge. A pension fund's tolerance for risk, and therefore its VaR, will be lower than a hedge fund's. "When you plug a two-year Treasury into any risk model now using past returns models, expected risk will be higher going forward," van Vliet said.

☆ Credit Suisse shareholders want answers and accountability, investor says
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailCredit Suisse shareholders want answers and accountability, investor saysVincent Kaufmann, CEO of Ethos Foundation, which represents pension funds comprising between 3% and 5% of Credit Suisse shareholders, gives his opinion on the bank's rescue by UBS ahead of its AGM.

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