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Decentralized investment management: an analysis of non-profit pension funds

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  • BATEMAN, HAZEL
  • THORP, SUSAN

Abstract

We investigate delegated investment management in private pension accounts using data from Australian accumulation (superannuation) funds. In Australian non-profit pension funds, trustees choose investment managers on behalf of members. We find that funds with many delegated managers have higher risk-adjusted returns than those with few. However funds with 13 or less specialized managers show no improvement over funds with a single diversified manager. All do worse than a benchmark portfolio of asset-class indices. Further, by using random selection to mimic the choices of an uninformed individual choosing from the same menu of delegate managers as used by trustees, we show that returns from pension funds with large numbers of trustee-selected managers compare favorably with returns from randomly selected, equally weighted portfolios. However this improvement falls off quickly for funds with fewer trustee-selected managers, or when randomly selected portfolios are also diversified across asset classes. Results indicate that an uninformed individual following a naive diversification strategy would have done as well as most trustee boards in this sample.

Suggested Citation

  • Bateman, Hazel & Thorp, Susan, 2007. "Decentralized investment management: an analysis of non-profit pension funds," Journal of Pension Economics and Finance, Cambridge University Press, vol. 6(1), pages 21-44, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:cup:jpenef:v:6:y:2007:i:01:p:21-44_00
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    Cited by:

    1. Sy, Wilson, 2010. "Cost, performance and portfolio composition of small pension funds in Australia," Journal of Pension Economics and Finance, Cambridge University Press, vol. 9(3), pages 345-368, July.
    2. Karen A. Tumanyants & Eugenia V. Gulyaeva, 2016. "Individual Choice of a Pension Fund in Russia: Are the Investment Results of the Fund Important?," International Journal of Economics and Financial Issues, Econjournals, vol. 6(4), pages 1328-1337.
    3. Monica GS Tan & Marie-Anne Cam, 2015. "Does governance structure influence pension fund fees and costs? An examination of Australian not-for-profit superannuation funds," Australian Journal of Management, Australian School of Business, vol. 40(1), pages 114-134, February.
    4. Adam Butt & M. Scott Donald & F. Douglas Foster & Susan Thorp & Geoffrey J. Warren & Tom Smith, 2017. "Design of MySuper default funds: influences and outcomes," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 57(1), pages 47-85, March.
    5. James R. Cummings & David Gallagher, 2016. "Effect of fund size on the performance of Australian superannuation funds," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 56(3), pages 695-725, September.

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