Sweden’s first national pensions buffer fund AP1 has selected MSCI to provide risk-analysis services after a public tender process.

MSCI said the SEK296bn (€31.8bn) pension fund had chosen it to provide the full range of risk analytics, including stress testing, statistical analysis, data visualisation and risk reporting.

Kaj Martensen, COO at AP1, said: “We are delighted to be working with MSCI and believe their powerful, multi-asset-class risk platform supports AP1 by providing an integrated view of risk throughout decision layers.”

MSCI said it first worked for AP1 in 2011 when the company was chosen to provide ESG ratings for equities and fixed income for the fund.

In other news, a Scandinavian pension fund is using IPE Quest to search for managers to take on two high-yield bond mandates – one for US bonds and the other for European bonds.

In search QN-2167, the unnamed pension fund is looking for one manager of US high yield, for a mandate expected to be around $300m (€273m). 

According to the search, the successful manager should be capable of achieving performance higher than the BofA Merrill Lynch US High Yield Master II Constrained Index, independent of the market and investment style.

The pension fund said the selected manager or managers must be willing to set up a segregated account.

The mandate is to include US high-yield products that are actively managed.

All types of investment approach and style will be accepted.

The pension fund said the expected excess return target was 1-2% a year, with a “suitable” tracking error.

It said it preferred products with a track record of at least three years.

Via a second search, QN-2168, the pension fund is searching for a manager to run a mandate of approximately €150m in European high yield.

The selected manager should be able to outperform the BofA Merrill Lynch European Currency High Yield Constrained Index, independent of the market and investment style.

Similarly to the US mandate, the selected manager or managers must be willing to set up a segregated account, which should include actively managed pan-European high-yield products but no leveraged loan products.

The deadline for responses to both searches is 23 March.

The IPE news team is unable to answer any further questions about IPE Quest tender notices to protect the interests of clients conducting the search. To obtain information directly from IPE Quest, please contact Jayna Vishram on +44 (0) 20 3465 9330 or email jayna.vishram@ipe-quest.com.

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