PIC APPOINTS MACQUARIE ASSET MANAGEMENT IN EXPANSION INTO THE $US60 BILLION US PRIVATE PLACEMENT MARKET
London, 13 April 2021 – Pension Insurance Corporation plc (“PIC”), a specialist insurer of defined benefit pension schemes, has appointed Macquarie Asset Management to manage a new US privately-sourced debt mandate. PIC has £9.4 billion invested in 150 privately- sourced debt investments in the UK and Europe, in areas including renewable energy, social housing, education and the not-for-profit sector.
Macquarie Asset Management’s US Private Placement team has a strong Environmental, Social & Governance (“ESG”) focus which is embedded within its risk management framework, which includes a proprietary ESG ratings system as well as drawing on external sources to assess ESG risks in the portfolio.
PIC has invested in secure, long-term, privately-sourced debt since 2012. These secure, long- term investments, which help with pricing for new business transactions, can be tailored to both match PIC’s liabilities in years when publicly available debt is scarce and to meet the requirements of those seeking credit. The appointment of Macquarie Asset Management will allow PIC to invest in new issuers, sectors, and across new geographies, which will diversify the portfolio and provide better risk-adjusted returns, helping trustees more easily secure the pensions of their scheme members.
Macquarie Asset Management is a global asset manager with a significant footprint and, as at 31 December 2020, the business had £303.6 billion in assets under management, including approximately £112.4 billion in Fixed Income.
Macquarie Asset Management joins PIC’s existing panel of leading fixed income managers, alongside Janus Henderson Investors, J.P. Morgan Asset Management, Schroders Investment Management, Wellington Management and 24 Asset Management.
Rob Groves, Chief Investment Officer at PIC, said: “The US private debt market offers a strong supply of high-quality investment grade credits. We already have a large allocation in our portfolio to US listed debt and we have recently appointed Wellington Management to oversee our growing US municipal bond portfolio, so this appointment is a natural complement to that strategy.”
Allen Twyning, Head of Debt Origination at PIC, said: “We appointed Macquarie Asset Management not only for their capabilities in sourcing these types of investments, but also because we felt they are a good cultural fit, in their ability and desire to be nimble and innovative. We have worked together to put in place a clear mandate that helps fulfil PIC’s key objective, which is to provide security for our policyholders through sensible sustainable investment into sectors that make sense on a long-term basis for society.”
Brett Lewthwaite, Chief Investment Officer and Global Head of Fixed Income for Macquarie Asset Management said: “We are pleased to support the investment objectives of such a well- regarded specialist insurer such as PIC and to have the opportunity to bring Macquarie Asset Management’s US Private Placement investment capabilities to the European market.”
Gillian Evans, Associate Director for Macquarie Asset Management’s Client Solutions Group added: “We are delighted to be expanding the breadth of investment capabilities that European insurers have outsourced to us and look forward to partnering with PIC and supporting the growth of their US investment portfolio.”
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Notes to Editors:
For further information please contact:
Pension Insurance Corporation Jeremy Apfel +44 (0)20 7105 2140 [email protected]
Teneo Douglas Campbell +44 (0)20 3757 9231 [email protected]
Macquarie Group Corporate Communications +44 (0)20 3037 4014 [email protected]
About Pension Insurance Corporation The purpose of PIC is to pay the pensions of its current and future policyholders. PIC provides secure and stable retirement incomes through leading customer service, comprehensive risk management and excellence in asset and liability management. At 31 December 2020, PIC had insured 273,500 pension scheme members and had £49.6 billion in financial investments, accumulated through the provision of tailored pension insurance buyouts and buy-ins to the trustees and sponsors of U.K. defined benefit pension schemes. Clients include FTSE 100 companies, multinationals and the public sector. PIC is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and Prudential Regulation Authority (FRN 454345). For further information please visit www.pensioncorporation.com
About Macquarie Asset Management Macquarie Asset Management (MAM) is the asset management arm of Macquarie Group. MAM is a full-service asset manager, providing investment solutions to clients across a range of capabilities including infrastructure and renewables, real estate, agriculture, transportation finance, private credit, equities, fixed income, and multi-asset solutions.
As at 31 December 2020, MAM had £303.6 billion of assets under management. Macquarie Group is a diversified financial group providing clients with asset management and finance, banking, advisory and risk and capital solutions across debt, equity and commodities. Founded in 1969, Macquarie employs more than 16,400 people in 31 markets.