Transparency on investments is a structural development reflecting clients’ increasing involvement in their pension investments. PGGM helps its clients to provide comprehensive information on their investments and encourages them to disclose information on listed and non-listed investments.

This gives stakeholders a better overview of their investments, the relationships between these investments and the policies that PGGM applies.

In this way PGGM clients are taking a lead in providing transparency. We support complete transparency because:

1. Our clients and their stakeholders are entitled to know what is being invested on their behalf; and

2. Our clients (mainly pension funds) rightly feel a responsibility to explain what they are doing.  As investment strategies take increasing account of participants’ preferences in respect, for example, of sustainable investments, stakeholders must also be able to assess how the relevant investment policies are set.

Our basic principle is that we encourage pension funds to disclose full information as to investments, listed or otherwise. We are also completely open about which organizations we work with to manage our assets. There are only a few exceptions to this rule. We do not disclose information in the following situations:

• If it would hinder investment returns. If this is believed likely, we amend the information we disclose accordingly and we  provide those details, that do not reveal information which is valuable to competitors. 

• If we would reveal confidential information relating to proprietary expertise. PGGM’s strength lies in its ability to select innovative investments in sometimes highly specialised areas. Disclosing information that would reveal confidential aspects of those special investment strategies to the public at large would harm both the asset manager and our client. And that is certainly something we do not want. 

• If contractual obligations do not allow publication. The vast majority of asset managers support our pro-active approach. Sometimes, however, it can be difficult. If, say, the fund is investing along with other investors, these investors have to consent to disclosure.

These exceptions do not automatically mean we do not disclose any information at all in certain situations. Often we amend the information in certain respects, for example by providing an indication of the market value of an investment rather than its exact value.

Click here for full details of our disclosure policy.