Welcome to Compound Interests – Mercer’s perspective on capital markets, asset management, and how you can get the most out of your investment portfolios. Financial markets have been anything but settled over the past several months, with continued geopolitical tensions, on-again off-again tariff announcements, and persistent uncertainty about the future path of interest rates, inflation, and investment activity.

Hear from Bernadette Chik, Leader of Defined Contribution (DC) Advisory Business, Mercer Canada, on the evolution of TDFs, and how the Canadian Association of Pension Supervisory Authorities (CAPSA) guidelines are changing what plan sponsors need to do to fulfill fiduciary responsibilities.

Hear from David Beamish, Head of North American Infrastructure, on the value that infrastructure can offer Canadian institutional investors in today’s volatile economic backdrop.

Hear from Andrew Berwick, Senior Investment Consultant, on the unique challenges and opportunities for Canadian insurers, highlighting where Canadian insurers might have different perspectives and priorities from their global peers. Mercer, along with our sister firm Oliver Wyman, recently surveyed insurance investors on key themes that will guide their investment decisions going forward – and there are unique differences that jump out from our Canadian respondents.

Hear from Guillaume Proulx-Cabana, Senior Investment Consultant, on investment opportunities for defined benefit pension plans. 2023 was an uncertain year for investors, with roller-coaster markets making outcomes and returns hard to predict. How does your investment strategy align with your DB plan’s ultimate objectives? Now is the time to ensure you are ready for what is to come this year.

Hear from Bonnie Foley-Wong, Sustainable Investment Leader, Mercer Canada on ESG considerations for investors - how plan sponsors are thinking about them, what plan sponsors’ and asset managers’ future plans are with respect to ESG, and how ESG fits into our present, low-growth, high-interest rate environment.