P&I: Private equity’s contribution to strengthening a pension fund
In a recent op-ed published in Pensions & Investments, Christopher Gonzales, executive director and chief investment officer of the Houston Firefighters’ Relief & Retirement Fund (HFRRF) writes that thanks to the superior returns delivered by private equity investment “help to strengthen and safeguard the retirements of our fund’s 6,600 active and retired members.”
The HFRRF was ranked fourth by private equity return in this year’s second annual PEGCC Public Pension Fund report. Gonzales writes:
Private equity has consistently provided our fund with impressive rates of return year after year, and that is seen in our overall fund performance. For the 10-year period ended June 30, 2013, the HFRRF total portfolio, now $3.5 billion, saw a 9.7% rate of return — easily topping our actuarially determined assumption rate target of 8.5%. In fact, HFRRF is ranked first for that period of 99 public pension funds for its investment return, according to Wilshire’s Trust Universe Comparison’s Report.
Private equity continues to outperform all other asset classes over 10-year time horizons, and is a key investment for public pension funds serving not just firefighters, but policemen, teachers and more who rely on and deserve strong and safe retirement funds.
To learn more about the PEGCC’s public pension research, click here.
