Hamish Mair, Fund Manager of CT Private Equity Trust comments on the Final Pension Investment Review in the full statement below:
“The Pension Investment Review is an important step in turning long-term investment ambition into reality for the UK’s pension savers. For DC schemes in particular, it offers an opportunity to move beyond headline commitments and deliver the structural reforms needed to access a wider, more productive mix of assets – private equity included.
Over decades, private equity has consistently outperformed traditional public markets, given its ability to take a long-term view, drive operational change, and support innovation. But the prevailing DC structure, with its emphasis on daily pricing and full liquidity, continues to exclude members from these benefits, even when the investment case is compelling. Rather than reinventing the wheel, we should focus on scaling up access to proven tools -like listed private equity investment trusts. These vehicles already offer schemes a regulated, liquid route into diversified portfolios, but they need greater recognition and clearer guidance to build confidence among trustees, consultants, and managers.
DB schemes also have a role to play, particularly when it comes to responsibly unlocking surplus to support productive finance. LGPS pools are also well positioned to allocate more capital to long-term assets like private equity, provided the regulatory environment supports it.
We need to focus not only on where pension capital should be allocated, but how all schemes can deploy that capital efficiently, responsibly, and at scale. That’s how we’ll ensure savers truly benefit from the long-term value creation private equity is capable of delivering.”
