Finnish occupational pensions firm Veritas sounded a cautiously optimistic note on the prospects for a turnaround in its real estate fortunes this year, in its annual results statement this morning, after two years of losses for the asset class.
The pension insurance company, which focuses on providing the YEL statutory occupational pension for self-employed people, reported an overall return of 8.4% on total assets that reached €4.8bn by the end of 2024.
Veritas’s chief investment officer Laura Wickström said 2024 had been a good investment year, with continued strong economic growth in the US having surprised markets.
“At the beginning of the year, equity markets in Finland and Europe also looked promising, but good performance diminished towards the end of the year. The geographical dispersion in equity returns was particularly large in the last quarter,” she said.
Fixed income investments returned 6.7% during the year, equities produced 12.7%, while real estate lost 0.7% and other investments – a category mostly made up of hedge funds — delivered a 7.9% return.
Veritas’s real estate loss has narrowed from the 2023 result, which was -4.1%.
The pensions insurer – the smallest of Finland’s four such firms in the private-sector side of the earnings-related pension system – said domestic real estate had had another disappointing year.
But Wickström said: “This year looks brighter if the decline in interest rates continues. It will positively affect the real estate market, and prices may finally start to rise.”
She said 2025 had started positively in the investment markets generally, and European equities in particular had performed well.
“The return on the Helsinki Stock Exchange was flat last year, but this year returns have been positive so far. Geopolitical threats and the risk of intensifying trade war may, however, cause market volatility,” she said.
On the business side, Veritas said it gained more than 6,800 customers last year, ending the year with nearly 71,000 employees and 16,000 entrepreneurs as customers.
Carl Haglund, chief executive officer of the Turku-headquartered firm, said: “In terms of customer acquisition, the year 2024 broke all previous records. Veritas’s sales grew by over 50% compared to the previous year.”
The other pension insurers, Ilmarinen, Varma and Elo, reported 2024 investment returns of 8.6%, 10.2% and 8.5%, respectively, earlier this month.
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