Insight Investment, one of the world’s largest global asset management companies, and financial technology company, RiskFirst, are joining forces to significantly improve ease of fund modelling for the UK defined benefit (DB) pensions market. Insight will upload data and characteristics of its LDI pooled funds and its buy-and-maintain funds into RiskFirst’s PFaroe modelling system, making them available for use across RiskFirst’s UK client base of consultants and pension plans.

RiskFirst’s clients will be able to easily incorporate Insight Investment funds – in which they may already invest or are considering investing – in a broad range of analyses, delivering detailed information to their fingertips and removing the need for funds to be set up individually. At the same time, Insight will be able to provide accurately modelled fund data directly to multiple existing and prospective clients, reducing duplicate uploading to separate client systems.

Simon Robinson, Head of Product Management, RiskFirst, says:

“We are pleased that the power and potential of PFaroe as an innovative and collaborative industry platform continues to grow. By working with Insight, we are transforming the way in which our clients can view and analyse funds, creating a central point of access that improves transparency, convenience and efficiency – thereby delivering significant added value to their businesses and investment strategies.”

Joanna Howley, Head of Pooled Solutions, Insight Investment, comments:

“Providing detailed risk and cashflow data on a range of investment funds used by mutual clients for risk hedging and cashflow management through PFaroe allows clients to more easily check they have the optimal investments to suit their needs. We see this creating an efficient, effective framework for fund accessibility, modelling and analysis.”

Insight is a leading asset manager currently managing over £600bn of assets* on behalf of leading pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, corporations and insurers. A key focus for Insight over the past 15 years has been to help deliver outcome-oriented investment products to clients helping them to manage unrewarded risks such as interest rate, inflation and increasingly cashflow risks.

Insight’s range of pooled LDI funds can be used to manage both the inflation and interest rate risks which impact the funding level of pension schemes. Its innovative maturing buy-and-maintain funds are used by investors seeking to invest in credit in a manner designed to mature to meet pre-specified cash requirements. The range of LDI and maturing buy-and-maintain funds can be structured in a customised fashion to reflect each client’s individual risk profile and cash requirements.

* As at 31 March 2019. Assets under management (AUM) are represented by the value of cash securities and other economic exposure managed for clients. Reflects the AUM of Insight, the corporate brand for certain companies operated by Insight Investment Management Limited (IIML). Insight includes, among others, Insight Investment Management (Global) Limited (IIMG), Insight Investment International Limited (IIIL) and Insight North America LLC (INA), each of which provides asset management services.