All Letter from the US articles – Page 9
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Opinion Pieces
PBGC woes
What a difference nine months can make. At the end of last September, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) closed its fiscal year with a deficit of ‘only’ $11bn (€7.9bn) and its director Charles Millard was busy implementing his new “less conservative” investment strategy, under which the majority of the $55bn assets was to be shifted out of bonds and into riskier stocks and alternative asset classes.
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Opinion Pieces
University challenge
Even the ‘smartest’ money is suffering. US university endowments, the early adopters of alternative and esoteric investments, which were often recommended by their most brilliant alumni, are experiencing huge problems because of the market downturn and the illiquidity of those assets, compounded by the increase of expenses and the decline of revenues, including donations.
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Opinion Pieces
Physician, heal thyself
Are pension funds victims of the current financial meltdown or are they part of the problem?
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Opinion Pieces
A consultant union
A new investment consulting player was born this year, the result of the merger between Mercer and Callan. The combined Mercer-Callan entity employs around 375 people, controls about 20% of the US market and has offices in 14 cities.
