Defining the OCIO Benefit: What Value Can It Provide to Plan Sponsors?

Although OCIO has become a buzzword across the broad investment community, many defined benefit plan sponsors have questions about how an OCIO affects a pension plan sponsor's role as fiduciary and which elements are key to a successful OCIO relationship. Here, we answer 7 common plan sponsor questions on outsourcing.

July 2021

The American Rescue Plan Act Brings Relief and Highlights Challenges for US Pension Plan Sponsors

The American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) was signed into law on March 11, 2021, and included a variety of plan sponsor–friendly changes to single-employer and multiemployer pension plans, but no real help for public sector plans. ARPA may change the future landscape of US pension plans, which may prompt plan sponsors to modify their investment strategies to achieve plan objectives. Its impact will vary greatly, both by plan type and individual plan circumstances.

May 2021

Not All Liability Hedges Are Created Evenly: Guidance for US Plan Sponsors in Today’s Interest Rate Environment

For many US pension plan sponsors, the déjà vu of falling discount rates and volatile equity markets again raises the question of how best to hedge pension liabilities, if at all. The issue of liability hedging is especially pertinent in today’s complex and asymmetrical interest rate environment.

October 2020

Navigating Market Crises

With the initial chaos of the COVID-19 market dislocation behind us but uncertainty still ahead, now is the time to refocus and potentially recalibrate core tenets of pension plan management. In this video series, we share our recommendations on how to address these challenges.

October 2020

Navigating Market Crises: Insights and Recommendations for US Plan Sponsors

Pensions face critical investment and management challenges as COVID-19 impacts capital markets. For single-employer plans, we have found that liquidity, rebalancing, implementation and communication are key issues to keep in mind.

May 2020

Credit Spreads Take Pensions for a Wild Ride

As the COVID-19 outbreak has escalated in the United States, sponsors of single employer–defined benefit pension plans have experienced a roller coaster ride. Avoiding, or at least cushioning, another wild ride requires a well-designed hedging strategy that accounts for credit spreads. We provide context for this rapidly evolving spread environment and potential responses.

April 2020

Liability Hedging in Response to Pandemic Crisis

April 8, 2020 - The economic impact from the COVID-19 virus has been swift, creating a dichotomy between “risk-free” Treasury interest rates and corporate spreads. In this paper, we outline how hedging programs may need to re-align their strategies given the current circumstances while continuing to lean on the basics.

April 2020

Friend or Foe: Hedge Funds Versus Alternative Risk Premia (Euro Edition)

Recent years have seen challenges for hedge funds and a shift toward low-fee passive and alternative risk premia (ARP) products in investor portfolios. In this paper, we investigate whether ARP and hedge funds are complementary or whether ARP funds are actually a viable replacement for hedge funds.

January 2020