Investment Archives - AB Pol Econ

5Feb

By Bob AscahNo Comments

Agencies, Government Finances, Investment, Opinion/Research, Politics

“Alberta’s New Heritage Fund “

Updated 8 February 2025 On 5 February this post was originally published. I February 2025 the Standing Committee of the Alberta Heritage Savings Trust Fund met to hear from the President of Treasury Board and Minister of Finance, Nate Horner, his officials, and the Acting Chief Executive Officer of the Alberta Investment Management Corporation AIMCo, provide a high level overview of the new Heritage Fund. Secondly, the Committee received an update on the second quarter report of the Fund's performance. As a result of this testimony and questions and answers. some of the unanswered questions I had about the Fund "refresh" were clarified. I have made some changes from the original post which are highlighted in bold type. The transcript for the meeting has not been posted b...

13Jan

By Bob AscahNo Comments

Agencies, Investment, Opinion/Research

On the Road to AIMCo’s Politicization

Reprinted from The Parkland Institute with permission. On the Road to AIMCo’s Politicization - Parkland Institute Jan 12, 2025 Bob Ascah The Alberta government’s abrupt dismissal of AIMCo’s board and CEO has raised alarms about political interference and the erosion of the corporation’s independence. The subsequent appointment of former Prime Minister Stephen Harper as AIMCo’s chair underscores concerns that the organization is being reshaped to serve partisan interests rather than focusing on its responsibilities to Albertans. Against this backdrop, understanding AIMCo’s evolution, governance challenges, and its politicization becomes more critical than ever. The Establishment of the Alberta Investment Management Corporation (AIMCo) Prior to the establishment of AIMCo, the...

Pinocchios Aplenty: Fact Checking Alberta’s Coal Industry Modernization Initiative

10Jan

By Bob AscahNo Comments

Energy, Environment, Investment, Opinion/Research, Politics

Pinocchios Aplenty: Fact Checking Alberta’s Coal Industry Modernization Initiative

Contributor Dr. Ian Urquhart is Professor Emeritus of Political Science from the University of Alberta. In memory of Kris Unger. Kris was passionate about preserving Alberta’s landscapes, most especially perhaps the Eastern Slopes and the Rockies. I hope his spirit approves of the following Introduction Disingenuous. That’s how The Globe and Mail’s Emma Graney characterized Energy Minister Brian Jean at the news conference announcing the government’s vague Coal Industry Modernization Initiative. Deceptive and brazen also would be fitting adjectives. In their 30-minute news conference Mr. Jean and Environment Minister Rebecca Schulz failed miserably to communicate accurate information to the public about many vital aspects of exploiting coal in Alberta. One of the few une...

18Dec

By Bob AscahNo Comments

Agencies, Financial Institutions, Government Finances, Investment, Politics

Why AIMCo needs more scrutiny and transparency- Part 3

Introduction In Parts 1 and 2 of this series I examined the weaknesses in AIMCo’s reporting on its investments. With the recent news about the firing of AIMCo’s board, CEO, the CEO’s chief of staff, the Chief Legal Officer, and the head of human resources, it is incumbent for the government to clearly demonstrate that it has no intention of bringing AIMCo more closely under the direction of politicians. One measure the government could adopt is to appoint representatives of the major pension plans to the AIMCo board. That representation would mean those sitting on the board would have some “skin in the game;” that is their clients’ interests would be better aligned with AIMCo’s interest. The recent appointment of Alberta’s deputy finance minister gives some say in AIMCo’s operations as...

Why AIMCo needs more scrutiny and transparency Part 2

6Nov

By Bob AscahNo Comments

Agencies, Bankruptcies, Fiscal History, Government Finances, Investment, Politics

Why AIMCo needs more scrutiny and transparency Part 2

Updated 6 November 2024 Note to readers: On 6 November the Standing Committee on the Alberta Heritage Savings Trust Fund (AHSTF) will be holding its annual public meeting at 6:30 p.m. in the Rocky Mountain Room, 2nd Floor of the Queen Elizabeth II Building in Edmonton. The annual public meeting is open to members of the public either in person or via social media including Facebook. I attended the last two meetings in person and have been able to raise important questions of policy. In the 2022 meeting (transcript here), I was the only member of the public present in person. In 2023, I was pleased that there were nine members of the public raising uncomfortable questions which generally were deflected by officials of Alberta Treasury Board and Finance (TBF) and senior Al...

29Oct

By Bob AscahNo Comments

Agencies, Demographics, Government Finances, Investment

Presentation to AB Resistance on proposed Alberta Pension Plan

On Saturday 26 October I spoke to a policy conference put on by AB Resistance. I presented to the group on the proposed APP and, in particular, the dangers of politicization of investment. Below is a PDF of my presentation. Related Posts https://abpolecon.ca/2024/04/07/the-frustrations-of-a-foipp-applicant-the-case-of-the-app-part-2/ https://abpolecon.ca/2024/03/24/frustrations-of-a-foipp-applicant-the-case-of-the-alberta-pension-plan/ https://abpolecon.ca/2023/09/24/an-alberta-pension-plan-app-your-plan-their-choice/

30Sep

By Bob AscahNo Comments

Economic Data, Investment, Opinion/Research

Book Review- John Rapley’s Twilight of the Money Gods

Twilight of the Money Gods, the title perhaps a nod to Frederick Nietzsche’s Twilight of the idols, is an explosive critique of the discipline of economics as a religion. John Rapley, according to his Globe and Mail biography is political economist specializing in global development, the world economy and economic history. Rapley born in Canada, completed doctoral studies in Canada and pursued post-doctoral work at Oxford University. This book is the best book I have read on the history of economic thought. Particularly interesting is his description of the evolution of political economy of Smith and Ricardo into the neoclassical canon of Alfred Marshall. He situates the great debate on free trade within the context of a rising and dominant and the Britannica English corn laws. He ...

7Apr

By Bob AscahNo Comments

Demographics, Economic Data, Government Finances, Intergovernmental, Investment, Opinion/Research, Politics

The Frustrations of a FOIPP applicant- the case of the APP (Part 2)

Updated 8 April 2023 Key Takeaways By January 2023 all the technical work had been completed for a launch of the APP plan four months before the UCP campaign made no mention of reviving this policy recommendation of the "Fair Deal" Panel. The public service relied on the expertise of outside parties due to lack of in house actuarial expertise. This FOIPP disclosure did not reveal how much the government ultimately paid even though Smith provided the $1.8-million figure to her 630 CHED Saturday call-in radio show. Existing administrative structures aren't conducive for sharing information as the onus is on the deputy head to decide what to disclose making it very difficult for senior officials to offer advice contrary to the preference of their political masters. The "Fa...

AIMCO and the Heritage Fund- What is investment income? Part 3

26Feb

By Bob AscahNo Comments

Agencies, Government Finances, Investment, Opinion/Research

AIMCO and the Heritage Fund- What is investment income? Part 3

In the first part of this series, I investigated information the Alberta Investment Management Corporation (AIMCo) supplies to the Securities and Exchange Commission on their quarterly Form 13F filing. Some unusual findings were cited about AIMCo's U.S. holdings, that to my knowledge, have not been publicized before. In Part 2, I looked at AIMCo's total portfolio and performance metrics which are disclosed in its 2022 annual report, the latest available. I concluded that Alberta taxpayers and citizens deserve much better financial reporting on the significant assets managed by the Government of Alberta and its agencies. Indeed, given AIMCo's performance on its fixed income portfolio, I argued that it would be prudent for Treasury Board and Finance to consider repatriating managing short t...

3Feb

By Bob AscahNo Comments

Credit Ratings, Government Finances, Investment, Politics

AIMCo’s Portfolio and Performance (Part 2)

This series has been informed by the public meeting of the Standing Committee of Alberta Heritage Savings Trust Fund. An overview of the meeting can be found on Abpolecon.ca here. Part 1 investigated information the Alberta Investment Management Corporation (AIMCo) supplies to the Securities and Exchange Commission on their quarterly Form 13F filing. Some unusual findings were cited about AIMCo's U.S. holdings, that to my knowledge have not been publicized before. The 13F filing is the most current disclosure of AIMCo's assets to 30 September 2023. In Part 2, I examine AIMCo's total portfolio and performance metrics which are disclosed in its 2022 annual report, the latest available. At the Heritage Fund public meeting on 30 November 2023 (Hansard record), one of the problems ide...