The Ontario government is creating the Investment Management Corporation of Ontario (IMCO) to provide investment management and advisory services to participating broader public sector (BPS) entities. The release states:
Established July 1, 2016 by proclamation of the Investment Management Corporation of Ontario Act, 2015, IMCO will enable BPS organizations to lessen costs by pooling their assets. The larger fund is expected to lower administrative costs, which will help improve return on investments.
The creation of this entity is another step forward in fulfilling Ontario's commitment to strengthen the retirement income system for Ontario's workers. Since 2013, the province has advocated for an enhancement to the Canada Pension Plan. Ontario's sustained leadership on this critical issue, as well as the collaboration with the federal government, provinces and territories, resulted in the recent agreement-in-principle on a national solution, signed on June 20th in Vancouver. With this consolidated approach and creation of IMCO, Ontario is modernizing workplace pensions by providing a new tool for the investment of retirement savings.
The founding members of the IMCO are the Ontario Pension Board (OPB) and the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB). With combined investment assets of approximately $50 billion, these two institutions provide the scale to ensure IMCO's success. IMCO is designed to accept, through a managed process, the membership application of any BPS organization with an investment fund that is interested in accessing its services.
IMCO will not require financial support from the Ontario government or Ontario taxpayers and will operate at arm's length from government as a member-based non-profit corporation. The creation of IMCO fulfills a commitment made in the 2015 Ontario Budget. It is expected to be operational by Spring 2017.
Three of the IMCO's initial Board of Directors were appointed July 1 by the Minister of Finance, including David Leith as Chair. The WSIB and OPB have each appointed two Directors to the initial Board. The new board's main priority will be to prepare the corporation to manage members' funds in the spring of 2017.
Strengthening workplace pension plans is part of the government's economic plan to build Ontario up and deliver on its number-one priority to grow the economy and create jobs. The four-part plan includes helping more people get and create the jobs of the future by expanding access to high-quality college and university education. The plan is making the largest infrastructure investment in hospitals, schools, roads, bridges and transit in Ontario's history and is investing in a low-carbon economy driven by innovative, high-growth, export-oriented businesses. The plan is also helping working Ontarians achieve a more secure retirement.
QUICK FACTS
- Participation of public sector and
broader public sector (BPS) organizations in IMCO will be
voluntary.
- Members of IMCO will retain ownership
of their assets and responsibility to determine how their assets
are invested by IMCO.
- The Ontario Pension Board (OPB) is
the administrator of the Public Service Pension Plan (PSPP), a
major defined benefit pension plan sponsored by the Government of
Ontario. PSPP membership is made up of employees of the provincial
government and its agencies, boards and commissions. At the end of
2015, OPB had $23 billion worth of assets under management.
- The Workplace Safety and Insurance
Board (WSIB) is an independent agency that administers compensation
and no-fault insurance for Ontario workplaces. At the end of 2015,
WSIB had $26.3 billion worth of assets under management.
- IMCO will be headquartered in Toronto, the second-largest North American financial services centre by employment after New York. "
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
- Read the Investment Management Corporation of Ontario Act (2015)
- Read Facilitating Pooled Asset Management for Ontario's Public-Sector Institutions.
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