Skip to main content
main content, press tab to continue
Press Release

World’s top pension funds see the largest assets fall in 20 years

September 11, 2023

N/A
N/A

SYDNEY, September 11, 2023 – The world’s largest 300 pension funds have seen a fall in assets for the first time since 2018. This drop is on par with the decline observed in 2008, occurring at a pace that has only been encountered twice in the twenty-year history of this annual study, according to this year’s research Global Top 300 Pensions Funds report conducted by the Thinking Ahead Institute, in conjunction with Pensions & Investments, a leading U.S. investment publication.

The research highlights high-level trends in the pension fund industry and provides information on the changing composition of the top-300 list of pension funds globally, the characteristics and investment allocations of these pension funds.

By the end of 2022, combined assets of the world’s top 300 pension funds decreased by 12.9%, now totalling US$ 20.6 trillion compared to US$ 23.6 trillion at the end of 2021. This represents a sharp correction compared to an 8.9% increase in the assets of the largest 300 pension funds in the previous year. The latest drop is also faster than a 12.6% annual fall in 2008, at the time of the global financial crisis. Until now, the 2008 fall had been the fastest annual decline recorded in the 20 years of the study.

The UK and Japan had the largest number of pension funds fall out of the top 300 globally. The UK gilts crisis of September 2022 and the ensuing market instability were significant contributing factors, as is the continuing shift from defined benefit (DB) pensions to smaller defined contribution (DC) plans.

In 2022, sovereign and public sector pension funds accounted for 152 funds in the top 300, representing 70.9% of total assets. Sovereign pension funds accounted for US$ 6.2 trillion in assets, while sovereign wealth funds (SWF) totalled US$ 11.6 trillion. Sovereign wealth funds’ assets grew by 13.9% during 2022, compared to a decrease of 10.6% for the sovereign pension funds in the Thinking Ahead Institute Top 300 study.

Jessica Gao, director at the Thinking Ahead Institute, reflects on key insights from the research: “We sounded a note of caution last year when reporting on a previous record. In last year’s research, we anticipated rising inflation and interest rate pressures, as well as the potential for slowing growth the following year. With the latest data, we have witnessed the drop in the pension assets, with a fragile global economy seeing equity and bond markets reverse previous gains.

“2022 recorded historic levels of economic uncertainty and market instability. A convergence of regime, geopolitical, and systemic risks magnified in a VUCA-fest (characterised by volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity), challenging pension funds to navigate and adapt within this rapidly changing environment.”

Ellie Boston-Clark, Co-Head of Governance, Investments Australia, WTW commented: “Australia had 16 funds included in the top 300, with most improving their ranking on last year. AustralianSuper remained the only fund in the top 20 globally, but the merger of Sunsuper and QSuper to create the Australian Retirement Trust saw it move to 21st place this year. The Future Fund remained in 26th place, while there were two new entrants, EquipSuper and Spirit Super, both a result of underlying mergers. All other Australian funds improved their ranking in 2022.

“The ongoing consolidation in Australia’s superannuation industry has been a major contributor to the rise in ranking of Australian funds, despite the slight weakening of the Australian dollar over the period. We expect the prominence of Australian funds among the top global asset owners to continue in coming years, but  as their scale grows, in an ever more challenging and uncertain environment,,  they will need to shift their focus increasingly to a strong governance focus. This is essential to maintain long-term stability and ensure they meet their performance objectives.”

Compared to all pension funds of any size, the world’s largest 300 pension funds now represent 43.0% of the global pension assets (compared to 41.1% in 2021), according to the Thinking Ahead Institute’s annual Global Pension Assets Study which estimates global pension fund assets across 22 major pension markets (the P22).

Regionally, North America now accounts for 45.6% of assets in the world’s 300 largest pension funds, while European pension funds account for 24.1% and Asia-Pacific 26.4%.

Looking at the very largest, the assets of the top 20 pension funds decreased by 11.8% in the last year, a slight improvement compared to the 12.9% downturn observed within the top 300 funds overall. The top 20 funds accounted for 41.5% of the asset under management (AUM) in the ranking, modestly above 2021’s share of 41.0%.

The Government Pension Investment Fund of Japan (GPIF) remains the very largest pension fund, leading the table with AUM of US$1.4 trillion. It has ranked top since 2002. Meanwhile, the Employees’ Provident Fund of India was the only new entrant in the top 20 funds for 2022.

Top 20 pension funds (US$ millions)
Top 20 pension funds in USD
Rank Fund Market Total Assets
1 Government Pension Investment Japan 1,448,643
2 Government Pension Fund Norway 1,300,214
3 National Pension South Korea 706,496
4 Federal Retirement Thrift U.S. 689,858
5 ABP Netherlands 490,382
6 California Public Employees U.S. 432,235
7 Canada Pension Canada 420,764
8 Central Provident Fund Singapore 406,711
9 National Social Security China 347,214
10 California State Teachers U.S. 290,384
11 New York State Common U.S. 233,227
12 PFZW Netherlands 231,781
13 New York City Retirement U.S. 228,170
14 Employees Provident Fund Malaysia 227,781
15 Local Government Officials Japan 207,145
16 Florida State Board U.S. 183,092
17 Ontario Teachers Canada 182,410
18 AustralianSuper Australia 176,446
19 Texas Teachers U.S. 173,277
20 Employees’ Provident India 158,722
Australian funds (US $ millions)
Australian funds in the Top 300 pension funds ranking
2022 rank 2021 rank Fund Total assets
18 20 AustralianSuper $176,4463
21 N/A* Australian Retirement Trust $157,8473
26 26 Future Fund $133,618
41 46 Aware Super $99,3153
67 77 UniSuper $68,8593
84 127 HOSTPLUS $54,5073
99 125 Cbus $47,6293
107 121 REST $44,7113
109 123 HESTA $44,4223
132 140 CSC $37,7703
174 181 State Super $28,4163
205 219 GESB $25,0103
222 232 ESSSuper $23,2233
231 238 Super SA $22,4033
255 - EquipSuper $20,1573
292 - Spirit Super $17,1053

*Merger of Sunsuper/QSuper
3 As of June 30, 2022

About the Thinking Ahead Institute

The Thinking Ahead Institute was established in January 2015 and is a global not-for-profit investment research and innovation member group made up of institutional asset owners and asset managers committed to mobilising capital for a sustainable future. It has over 55 members around the world, with combined responsibility for over US$16 trillion, and is an outgrowth of WTW Investments’ Thinking Ahead Group - set up in 2002.

About WTW Investments

WTW’s Investments business is focused on creating financial value for institutional investors through its expertise in risk assessment, strategic asset allocation, fiduciary management and investment manager selection. It has over 900 colleagues worldwide, more than 1,000 investment clients globally, assets under advisory of over US$4.7 trillion and US$187 billion of assets under management.

About WTW

At WTW (NASDAQ: WTW), we provide data-driven, insight-led solutions in the areas of people, risk and capital. Leveraging the global view and local expertise of our colleagues serving 140 countries and markets, we help organizations sharpen their strategy, enhance organizational resilience, motivate their workforce and maximize performance.

Working shoulder to shoulder with our clients, we uncover opportunities for sustainable success—and provide perspective that moves you.

Related content tags, list of links Press Release
Contact us