News

Industry super fund owned IFM Investors and ISPT are exploring a merger at the request of their shareholders amidst a challenging outlook for commercial property.

The last 12 months have been challenging for Australian Retirement Trust, but the amount of noise in the market has been “quite productive”. It’s also shown that when it comes to unlisted assets, price is more volatile than value.

Martin Fahy has stepped down as CEO of the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA) after seven years at the helm where he played a “pivotal role” in addressing the policy and regulatory changes of the period.

AustralianSuper CIO Mark Delaney believes the fund is harder on internal teams than external managers, but says that its unlisted property experience has been “the worst of all worlds”.

Jefferson & Shea Analytics will bring a new fee benchmarking service to Australia to get super funds a better deal from their external managers. The good managers will like it – the bad ones won’t.

Having poached a number of high-profile portfolio managers, and with backing from family offices and high net worth investors, new boutique Blackwattle is trying to correct the “inadequacies” of the Australian funds management industry.

A number of industry funds have invested in Nuveen’s US Cities Workplace Strategy as they diversify away from traditional real estate and harness thematics related to changing work and life patterns.

Specialist investment and wealth management consulting firm KONU has boosted its ranks with the addition of the former chief operating officer of AMP Capital Public Markets.

The NZ Superannuation Fund (NZS) has topped up its hedge fund exposure, handing US$100 million to trans-Atlantic global macro-strategy specialist Episteme Capital.

A new fund headed up by several entertainment and finance veterans will back film and television productions in Australia, taking advantage of “huge changes” in the industry that have made streaming content king.

While equities have been the first stop for institutional investors trying to decarbonise their portfolios and back the transition to renewables, fixed income is the next lever they want to pull.

A rethink of the classic 60/40 portfolio and the need to generate consistent income are driving global pension funds deeper into private debt. But this “best in a generation” vintage probably won’t last.