People’s Partnership1, provider of The People’s Pension to more than 6.7 million people, has today said that it is moving towards investing in private markets, including UK-based assets.
In its response to the call for evidence ahead of the Government’s first pension review, the profit for people organisation has stated it is reaching the necessary scale, as well as developing the in-house capabilities that are needed, to invest in assets such as infrastructure and real estate.
The leading workplace pension provider and Trustees of The People’s Pension, who manage £29 billion of their members money, have said that investing in such assets in a way that leaves maximum value in the hands of members is part of a long-term plan for the future of the business. The People’s Pension already invests 14 per cent of its main investment fund in both UK listed companies2 and Government debt.
Mark Condron, Chair of The People’s Pension Trustee Board, said:
“As Trustees, we firmly believe in diversified investment opportunities that present good, consistent returns for our members over the long term. We have been looking at private markets for some time and we are now approaching the scale where we believe we will be able to invest in them effectively. Investing in such assets has always been dependent on schemes such as ours reaching scale.
“The business is building a team of specialists that will enable us to overcome some of the hurdles we have faced with accessing private markets in a way that maximises value for members.
“We remain committed to the fund having a positive impact both on our members as well as the UK economy.”
Dan Mikulskis, Chief Investment Officer at People’s Partnership, provider of The People’s Pension, said:
“It’s important that policymakers and the industry look closely at the Australian and Canadian models as these countries deliver the outcomes the UK government is looking for.
“The People’s Pension is fast approaching having £30bn in assets under management and has built the scale to start seriously considering investing in private markets. We are currently in the process of hiring the investment team members who will make this possible.
“We are also advancing work both with commercial asset managers as well as asset owner peers, with a view to putting top-class proposals in front of our trustees to allocate a portion of our assets to private markets. We believe that with our own asset ownership capabilities in place we will continue deliver fantastic value to members’ pensions.”
ENDS
Notes to editor:
- People’s Partnership provides The People’s Pension, one of the largest independent master trusts in the UK, serving more than six million pension savers across the UK and manages £29bn in assets. As a business without shareholders, it reinvests its profits with the aim to help customers and achieve better financial outcomes for everyone.
- The People’s Pension’s default fund – Global Investments (up to 85% shares) Fund – includes 3% UK shares, 4% UK Gilts and 7% Sterling Corporate Bonds.