Director: Takatoshi Ito
With imposed stress on public pension systems across advanced economies due to growing aging populations, many countries have created or reformed public pension funds to finance future shortfalls in pension contributions. Under the guidance of Professor Takatoshi Ito, director of the Program on Public Pension and Sovereign Funds ("PPPSF") and associate director of research at CJEB, this program was established to examine and conduct extensive research on how public pension funds and sovereign wealth funds should be structured, both in portfolio and governance. Professor Keiko Honda contributes to the program as a senior advisor.
This program focuses on public pension fund reforms across Japan and other global economies, and how Japan can learn from other public pension fund reforms to enhance its Government Pension and Investment Fund (GPIF). Similarly, the GPIF can serve as a model for structuring other public and quasi-public pension funds in Japan and other emerging market economies with the intention of setting up or reforming its own funds. For more information on this program, please contact Ryoko Ogino, Managing Director, at 212-853-8593 or [email protected].
Senior Advisor: Keiko Honda
Working Paper Series
Public Sector Investment Funds: How the Best-in-Breed Evolved by Andrew Rozanov (February 2017)
Public Pension Fund Governance and Investment: Update and Critique Comparing Japan’s GPIF with Foreign Peers by Sadayuki Horie (February 2017)
Conference and Webinar Series
2023-2024
Alternative Investing at Public Pension Funds
Wednesday, April 10, 2024 | 12:45 – 1:45 PM
Room 640, Geffen Hall, Columbia Business School
Featuring:
Keiko Honda, Adjunct Professor, School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA), Columbia University
Macky Tall, Partner and Chair of Global Infrastructure, The Carlyle Group
Opening Remarks: Takatoshi Ito, Professor, SIPA; Director, Program on Public Pension and Sovereign Funds, CJEB
Note: This event was off the record, and we were unable to accommodate media representatives.
Conference on Public Pension and Sovereign Funds
Thursday, November 30, 2023 | 3:00 – 6:10 PM
Room 620, Geffen Hall, Columbia Business School
Panel I: Macro Environment for Long-Term Investment
Panelists:
Richard Clarida, C. Lowell Harriss Professor of Economics and International Affairs, Columbia University
Patricia C. Mosser, Director, MPA Program in Economic Policy Management; Senior Research Scholar, School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA), Columbia University
Junko Nishioka, Chief Economist; Managing Director & Deputy General Manager, Treasury Unit, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation
Discussant: Hiroshi Ugai, Chief Economist; Managing Director, University Fund, Japan Science and Technology Agency
Moderator: Takatoshi Ito, Director, Program on Public Pension and Sovereign Funds (PPPSF), CJEB; Professor, SIPA
Panel II: The University Fund of Japan
Panelists:
Mark Anson, CEO and CIO, Commonfund
Masakazu Kita, Vice President and CIO, University Fund, Japan Science and Technology Agency
Naoya Sugimoto, CFA, CAIA, FRM, Managing Director and Co-CIO, University Fund, Japan Science and Technology Agency
Maria Vassalou, Head, Pictet Institute
Moderator: Takatoshi Ito
Welcoming Remarks: David Weinstein, Director, CJEB; Carl S. Shoup Professor of the Japanese Economy, Columbia University
2022-2023
Live Webinar
Series on Public Pension and Sovereign Funds
ESG Investing – Standard Setting and Pension Funds
Friday, April 7, 2023 | 8:00 – 9:00 AM (ET)
Friday, April 7, 2023 | 9:00 – 10:00 PM (Japan Time)
Panelists:
Tomoko Amaya, Vice Minister for International Affairs, Financial Services Agency, Government of Japan
Pedro Antonio Guazo Alonso, Representative of the Secretary-General for the Investment of the Assets, United Nations Joint Staff Pension Fund
Jingdong Hua ’03SIPA, Vice-Chair, International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB)
Suyi Kim, Senior Managing Director & Global Head of Private Equity, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments)
Moderator: Keiko Honda, Adjunct Professor, School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA), Columbia University
Opening Remarks: Takatoshi Ito, Professor, SIPA; Director, Program on Public Pension and Sovereign Funds, CJEB
Please note this webinar was held under the Chatham House Rule. The recording of the event will not be made public.
2021-2022
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Series on Public Pension and Sovereign Funds*
How ESG is Practiced in Public Funds
Thursday, April 14, 2022 | 7:00–8:30 PM (EDT)
Friday, April 15, 2022 | 8:00–9:30 AM (Japan Time)
Keynote:
Masataka Miyazono, President, Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF) (Slides)
Panelists:
Caroline Flammer, Professor of International and Public Affairs, School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA), Columbia University
Pedro Antonio Guazo Alonso, Representative of the Secretary-General for the Investment of the Assets, United Nations Joint Staff Pension Fund
Keiko Honda, Adjunct Professor and Adjunct Senior Research Scholar, SIPA
Moderator: Takatoshi Ito, Professor, SIPA; Director, Program on Public Pension and Sovereign Funds, Center on Japanese Economy and Business (CJEB), Columbia Business School
Opening Remarks: David E. Weinstein, Director, CJEB; Carl S. Shoup Professor of the Japanese Economy, Columbia University
* Please note, this webinar was held under the Chatham House Rule. The recording of the event will not be made public. Simultaneous interpretation was provided.
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Series on Public Pension and Sovereign Funds
ESG Investing and Its Impact on Asset Pricing
Wednesday, July 7, 2021 | 8:00–9:00 AM (EDT)
Wednesday, July 7, 2021 | 9:00–10:00 PM (Japan Time)
Keynote:
Masataka Miyazono, President, Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF)
Panel Discussion:
Jessica Alsford, Global Head of Sustainability Research, Morgan Stanley
Keiko Honda, Adjunct Senior Research Scholar, School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA), Columbia University
Lukasz Pomorski, Head of ESG Research and Managing Director, AQR Capital Management
Moderator:
Takatoshi Ito, Professor, SIPA; Director, Program on Public Pension and Sovereign Funds, Center on Japanese Economy and Business (CJEB), Columbia Business School
Special Note(s):
Please note, this conference was held under the Chatham House Rule. The recording of the event will not be available.
This webinar was conducted in English as part of "The Japanese Economy in the COVID-19 Era" series.
2020-2021
Conference on Public Pension and Sovereign Funds*
Sessions:
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Pension Funds and ESG Investing
Wednesday, November 4, 2020 | 7:00 – 8:00 PM (EST)
Thursday, November 5, 2020 | 9:00 – 10:00 AM (JST)
Live Webinar
Featuring: Anita George, Executive Vice-President and Deputy Head, CDPQ Global; Doug Peterson, President and CEO, S&P Global
Moderator: Keiko Honda, Adjunct Professor and Adjunct Senior Research Scholar, School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA), Columbia University; Former CEO of the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) of the World Bank Group
Opening Remarks: David E. Weinstein, Director, CJEB; Carl S. Shoup Professor of the Japanese Economy, Columbia University; Takatoshi Ito, Professor, SIPA, Columbia University; Director, Program on Public Pension and Sovereign Funds, CJEB
Public Pension Funds in the COVID-19 Era
Thursday, November 19, 2020 | 7:00 – 8:15 PM (EST)
Friday, November 20, 2020 | 9:00 – 10:15 AM (JST)
Live Webinar
Featuring: Dr. Catherine L. Mann, Global Chief Economist, Citibank; Masataka Miyazono, President, Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF); Geoffrey Rubin, Senior Managing Director and Chief Investment Strategist, CPP Investments; Ángel Ubide, Managing Director and Head of Economic Research for Global Fixed Income, Citadel
Moderator: Takatoshi Ito, Professor, School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA), Columbia University; Director, Program on Public Pension and Sovereign Funds, CJEB
* Please note, this conference was held under the Chatham House Rule. The recording of the event will not be made public.
2019-2020
Conference on Public Pension and Sovereign Funds
Thursday, November 21, 2019 | 1:00 - 5:20 PM
The Italian Academy, Columbia University
Keynotes:
ESG in Public Pension and Sovereign Wealth Funds
by Keiko Honda, Former Executive Vice President and Former Chief Executive Officer, Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA); Incoming Adjunct Senior Research Scholar and Adjunct Professor, School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA), Columbia University (As of January 2020)
Key Requirements for Sustaining the Global Expansion
by John Lipsky, Peter G. Peterson Distinguished Scholar, Henry A. Kissinger Center for Global Affairs, Johns Hopkins University; Former Deputy Managing Director, International Monetary Fund (IMF)
Other participants include:
Patrick Bolton, Barbara and David Zalaznick Professor of Business, Columbia Business School
Gauti B. Eggertsson, Professor of Economics, Brown University
Takatoshi Ito, Professor, SIPA, Columbia University; Director, Program on Public Pension and Sovereign Funds, CJEB
Patricia Mosser, Director, MPA Program in Economic Policy Management; Senior Research Scholar, SIPA, Columbia University
Koji Nakamura, General Manager for the Americas, Bank of Japan
Eric Ngiam, Senior Vice President, GIC Asset Management
Hugh Patrick, Chairman, CJEB, Columbia Business School
Lukasz Pomorski, Managing Director, AQR Capital
Sudhir Rajkumar, Representative of the Secretary-General (RSG) for UN Pension Fund Investments
Maria Vassalou, PhD, Chief Investment Officer, VASSALOU C∆PIT∆L MANAGEMENT
2018-2019
Conference on Public Pension and Sovereign Funds
Thursday, December 6, 2018 | 1:00-5:20 PM
The Italian Academy, Columbia University
Keynote speakers: Roger W. Ferguson, Jr., President and Chief Executive Officer, TIAA; Nobuchika Mori, Former Commissioner, Financial Services Agency, Japan; Senior Research Scholar, School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University
Other participants include:
Kee Chong Lim, Deputy Group Chief Investment Officer and President, Americas, GIC; Ekaterina (Katya) Gratcheva, Lead Financial Officer in Finance, Competitiveness, and Innovation Global Practice, World Bank Group; Takatoshi Ito, Professor, Columbia University; Director, Program on Public Pension and Sovereign Funds, CJEB; Jacob J. Lew, Former Secretary of the Treasury; Visiting Professor of International and Public Affairs, SIPA; Catherine Mann, Global Chief Economist, Citigroup; Athanasios Orphanides, Professor of the Practice of Global Economics and Management, MIT Sloan School of Management; Hugh Patrick, Director, CJEB, Columbia Business School; Sanjay Peters, Adjunct Associate Professor of International and Public Affairs, School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA), Columbia University; Lukasz Pomorski, Managing Director, AQR Capital; Geoffrey Rubin, Senior Managing Director and Chief Investment Strategist, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board; Norihiro Takahashi, President, Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF); Ayako Yasuda, Professor of Finance, UC Davis Graduate School of Management
2017-2018
Conference on Public Pension and Sovereign Funds
Monday, February 26, 2018 | 1:15-5:45 p.m.
The Italian Academy, Columbia University
Keynote speakers: Jacob J. Lew, Former Secretary of the Treasury; Visiting Professor of International and Public Affairs, School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University; The Honorable Yasuhisa Shiozaki, Member of the House of Representatives of Japan
Other participants include:
Anne Valentine Anderson, Head of Funds Management and Global COO for Real Assets, BlackRock; Ralph Berg, Executive Vice President and Global Head of Infrastructure, OMERS; Barry S. Blattman, Vice Chairman, Brookfield Asset Management; Richard Clarida, C. Lowell Harriss Professor of Economics and Professor of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University; Christopher Ferrarone, Senior Vice President of Economics and Investment Strategy Department, GIC; Takatoshi Ito, Professor, School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University and Director, Program on Public Pension and Sovereign Funds, CJEB; Carol Jeppesen, Senior US Network Manager, United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment; John Lipsky, Peter G. Peterson Distinguished Scholar at the Henry A. Kissinger Center for Global Affairs; Senior Fellow, Foreign Policy Institute, Johns Hopkins University; Hugh Patrick, Director, CJEB, Columbia Business School; Lukasz Pomorski, Managing Director, AQR; Carine Smith Ihenacho, Global Head of Ownership Strategies, Norges Bank Investment Management; Norihiro Takahashi, President, Government Pension Investment Fund; Maria Vassalou, Partner, Asset Management, Perella Weinberg Partners
2016-2017
Conference on Public Pension and Sovereign Funds
Wednesday, April 12, 2017, 1:15 - 5:30 PM
The Italian Academy, Columbia University
Sessions: "Investment Challenges in the Environment of Secular Stagnation"; "Best Practices: The Case of GPIF"; "Seeking Alpha - The Role of Alternatives in Asset Allocation"
Participants: Kevin Bong, Senior Vice President, Economics and Investment Strategy, GIC; Joyce Chang, JP Morgan Chase & Co.; Richard Clarida, Columbia University; Scott Evans, NY City Retirement Systems; John Gandolfo, the World Bank Group Staff Retirement and Benefit Plans; Sadayuki Horie, Nomura Research Institute; former GPIF Investment Advisory Committee; Takatoshi Ito, Columbia University; Director, Program on Public Pension and Sovereign Funds, CJEB; William Kinlaw, State Street Associates; Hilda Ochoa-Brillembourg, Strategic Investment Group; Hugh Patrick, Director, CJEB; Bob Prince, Bridgewater Associates; Andrew Rozanov, Chatham House; Geoffrey Rubin, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board; Chris Schindler, Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan; Fiona Stewart, World Bank; Lawrence Summers, Harvard University; and Norihiro Takahashi, President, Government Pension Investment Fund