World’s top pension funds see the largest assets fall in 20 years
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North America now accounts for nearly half of assets in world’s 300 largest pension funds
ARLINGTON, Va., Sept. 11, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The world’s largest 300 pension funds saw their assets decline for the first time since 2018, according to this year’s Global Top 300 Pensions Funds conducted by WTW’s Thinking Ahead Institute. This drop is on par with the decline observed in 2008, occurring at a pace that has only been encountered twice in the 20-year history of this annual study.
The research highlights high-level trends in the pension fund industry and provides information on the changing composition of the top 300 list of pension funds globally as well as the characteristics and investment allocations of these pension funds.
By the end of 2022, combined assets of the world’s top 300 pension funds had decreased by
The U.K. and Japan had the largest number of pension funds fall out of the top 300 globally. The U.K. gilts crisis of September 2022 and the ensuing market instability were significant contributing factors, as was the continuing shift from defined benefit pensions to smaller defined contribution plans.
In 2022, sovereign and public sector pension funds accounted for 152 funds in the top 300, representing
“We sounded a note of caution last year when reporting on a previous record. In last year’s research, we anticipated rising inflation and interest rate pressures, as well as the potential for slowing growth the following year,” said Jessica Gao, director at the Thinking Ahead Institute. “With the latest data, we have witnessed the drop in the pension assets, with a fragile global economy seeing equity and bond markets reverse previous gains.
“2022 recorded historic levels of economic uncertainty and market instability. A convergence of regime, geopolitical and systemic risks magnified in a VUCA-fest (characterised by volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity), challenging pension funds to navigate and adapt within this rapidly changing environment.”
Compared to all pension funds of any size, the world’s largest 300 pension funds now represent
Regionally, North America now accounts for
Looking at the very largest, the assets of the top 20 pension funds decreased by
The Government Pension Investment Fund of Japan (GPIF) remains the world’s largest pension fund, with AUM of US
Gao concludes: “While market performance has improved from 2022 to 2023, we continue to proceed with a high degree of caution. Pensions schemes are operating in a new environment, where conditions are changing faster and faster each day.
“Asset owners are increasingly influenced by technological advancements and the rise of artificial intelligence. Balancing the need to catch up with asset managers’ AI-driven insights while retaining control over their investment mandates underscores the critical role of effective collaboration and strategic adaptation for AOs in an investment ecosystem with increasingly influential technologies.
“Likewise, rightsizing sustainability efforts has become a crucial balancing act, with overly ambitious commitments risking the fund’s legitimacy, and too small a commitment resulting in missed opportunities.”
Top 20 pension funds (US$ millions)
Rank | Fund | Market | Total Assets |
1 | Government Pension Investment | Japan | 1,448,643 |
2 | Government Pension Fund | Norway | 1,300,214 |
3 | National Pension | South Korea | 706,496 |
4 | Federal Retirement Thrift | U.S. | 689,858 |
5 | ABP | Netherlands | 490,382 |
6 | California Public Employees | U.S. | 432,235 |
7 | Canada Pension | Canada | 420,7641 |
8 | Central Provident Fund | Singapore | 406,711 |
9 | National Social Security | China | 347,2142 |
10 | California State Teachers | U.S. | 290,384 |
11 | New York State Common | U.S. | 233,227 |
12 | PFZW | Netherlands | 231,781 |
13 | New York City Retirement | U.S. | 228,170 |
14 | Employees Provident Fund | Malaysia | 227,781 |
15 | Local Government Officials | Japan | 207,145 |
16 | Florida State Board | U.S. | 183,092 |
17 | Ontario Teachers | Canada | 182,410 |
18 | AustralianSuper | Australia | 176,4463 |
19 | Texas Teachers | U.S. | 173,277 |
20 | Employees’ Provident | India | 158,7222 |
US funds’ data is as of September 30, 2022.
Non-US funds’ data is as of December 31, 2022, except where shown.
- As of March 31, 2023
- Estimate
- As of June 30, 2022
About the Thinking Ahead Institute
The Thinking Ahead Institute was established in January 2015 and is a global not-for-profit investment research and innovation member group made up of institutional asset owners and asset managers committed to mobilising capital for a sustainable future. It has over 55 members around the world, with combined responsibility for over US
*As of December 31, 2022
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