The AIF Institute Kicks off Center for Insurance Investing Collaboration at Inaugural Asian Investors' Forum

NEW YORK, April 14, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The AIF Institute Center for Insurance Investing held its first investor deep-dive panel discussion on reimaging investment portfolios as part of the 2021 AIF Asian Investors' Forum.  The three-day agenda was also highlighted by a keynote fireside chat between 76^th U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and Managing Partner of Lindsay Goldberg Jack Lew and Korea Investment Corporation (KIC) CEO and Former Executive Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Heenam Choi.  The two thought leaders expressed cautious optimism for the global markets and provided keen insights on fundamental economic recovery, reflecting on the interconnectivity between the U.S. and Asian economies.

The inaugural forum for AIF Global, now in its 16^th year, connected institutional investors from 13 countries worldwide and included significant participation from investors in the insurance industry, culminating with the hybrid AIF Institute session panel on insurance investing.

"We are pleased to expand the work of the AIF Institute globally to focus on the insurance industry through the Center for Insurance Investing, as well as in coordination with AIF's investor forums," notes Melissa Waller, President of the AIF Institute. "The Center for Insurance Investing, consistent with each of the AIF Institute Centers of Excellence, will provide the platform and critical resources to investors globally as they reimagine their investment programs and portfolios."

Sharmila Kassam, Executive Director of the AIF Institute, emphasizes, "Insurance investors construct their portfolios in a highly regulated environment, often having to deviate from accepted portfolio optimization methods because of regulatory limitations that make certain asset classes less investable." She continues, "The Center's work will focus on current investment research, tackle challenging topics such as ESG, highlight opportunities in financial innovation, and provide a high-quality resource for investment education to encourage common understandings and dialogue among industry stakeholders."

The Center for Insurance Investing is supported by founding faculty members Apollo, BlackRock, Goldman Sachs Asset Management, Insight Investment, and New York Life Investments, who represent five of the foremost industry asset managers.  The Center's work is investor-driven by insurance chief investment officers and decision makers, some of whom serve on AIF's Insurance Advisory Board.

"Insurance companies invest their portfolios differently from other institutional investors. They face unique concerns relating to income volatility, risk-based capital charges, asset liability matching, and net investment income. Different types of investors (e.g., life versus property/casualty versus healthcare) have different liquidity needs and corresponding investment objectives," says Brant Maller, Founder and CEO of AIF Global.

Maller continues, "Insurance company investor portfolios are significantly underallocated relative to private markets versus their peer investors, largely due to regulatory constraints, in a lower for longer interest rate environment. AIF long ago recognized that this important segment of the investment community was understudied and underserved. That was a primary reason why it launched the Center for Excellence in Insurance Investing."

AIF will conduct its 2021 Insurance Investors' Forum June 8–9 in live online format.  The comprehensive agenda will feature deep-dive sessions with the AIF Institute Center for Insurance Investing.

About AIF Global and the AIF Institute

AIF Global is an independent economic think tank with the mission of fostering the exchange of best ideas, practices, and information among institutional investors globally to help them achieve their investment objectives.  Since its inception five years ago, the AIF Institute, the educational arm of AIF Global, has been at the forefront of providing customized education to institutional investors globally. Recently, the AIF Institute announced its fourth consecutive educational program partnership with the National Institute of Public Finance, which brings together the world's leading public finance experts for an intense curriculum.  Through this collaboration, the AIF Institute helped create the nation's first Certificate in Public Treasury Management (CPTM) program. The AIF Institute four Centers of Excellence in 2021 were created to meet investor needs globally, with the Center for Insurance, Center for ESG and Sustainable Investing, Center for Private Capital Investing, and the newly announced Center for Financial Innovation. 

AIF Global website:  https://aifglobal.org
AIF Insurance Advisory Board:  https://aifglobal.org/insurance-board/

About Apollo

Apollo is a leading global investment manager with offices in New York, Los Angeles, San Diego, Houston, Bethesda, London, Frankfurt, Madrid, Luxembourg, Mumbai, Delhi, Singapore, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Tokyo, among others. Apollo had assets under management of approximately $455 billion as of December 31, 2020 in credit, private equity and real assets funds. For more information about Apollo, please visit www.apollo.com.

About Goldman Sachs Asset Management

Goldman Sachs Asset Management is the asset management arm of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., which supervises more than $1.9 trillion in assets as of December 31, 2020. Goldman Sachs Asset Management provides discretionary investment advisory services and has investment professionals in all major financial centers around the world. The company offers investment strategies across a broad range of asset classes to institutional and individual clients globally. Founded in 1869, Goldman Sachs is a leading global investment banking, securities and investment management firm that provides a wide range of financial services to a substantial and diversified client base that includes corporations, financial institutions, governments and high-net-worth individuals.

About Insight Investment

Insight Investment is a global investment manager that designs solutions for institutional investors focused on the ultimate outcome, not returns alone. We aim to maximize certainty and build resilience, not just minimize risk and manage volatility. Working in partnership with clients and their advisers, we build solutions drawing on four interlinked capabilities: return generation across the global complex of fixed income markets, strategic liquidity management, risk management as well as LDI.

About New York Life Investments

With $662 billion in Assets Under Management* as of December 31, 2020, New York Life Investments is comprised of the affiliated global asset management businesses of its parent company, New York Life Insurance Company, and offers clients access to specialized, independent investment teams through its family of affiliated boutiques. New York Life Investments remains committed to clients through a combination of the diverse perspectives of its boutiques and a long-lasting focus on sustainable relationships. For more information, please visit newyorklifeinvestments.com.

*AUM includes assets of Investment Advisors affiliated with New York Life Insurance Company as of December 31, 2020. AUM for Candriam and Ausbil is reported at the spot rate.

Media Contacts
Mary Beth Grover / Fred Schweinfurth
ASC Advisors
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SOURCE AIF Institute

Related Links

https://aifglobal.org/