Boards and executives of long-term funds, such as pension plans, sovereign wealth funds, and endowments need to manage their portfolios to meet their long-term purpose, which may be decades or more into the future.
Yet no fund has the luxury of looking only to that long-term time horizon. Each must also meet expectations in the near term in order to continue in its role and with its investment strategy. This challenge of meeting both long-term obligations and short-term expectations means that even the longest-term investor must manage across multiple time horizons. This necessity is often at odds with most risk processes, which have been developed to address short-term risks or to target long-term return—but not both.
FCLTGlobal, with input from its members, which include many of the world’s leading asset owners and investors, has raised this challenge as central to their ability to take advantage of their long time horizons. Too often, funds carefully set up long-term investment strategies, with a focus on meeting their ultimate purpose, only to shift to a short-term strategy in response to stressful market conditions.
Investor Risk and Responsibilities | Report
Storm Clouds & Silver Linings: Long-term Investing in an Age of Geopolitical Uncertainty
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Report
July 14, 2025
Climate change is a force reshaping the global economy—and will influence capital allocation for decades to come. Climate-related risks and externalities, especially carbon emissions, are...
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Report
March 6, 2025
At FCLT Summit 2025, business and investment leaders developed practical solutions for creating long-term value amid unprecedented structural shifts in global capital markets.
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Report
February 26, 2025
The FCLTGlobal Blue Book, now in its third iteration, brings together perspectives from select members on how to put long-term strategies into practice today.
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Report
April 9, 2024
We are now at a moment when global rivalry is running hot and support for globalization is cooling. The resulting opportunity set for investors is...
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Report
April 11, 2022
An Adaptable, Top-Down Approach to Addressing Climate Change in Investment Portfolios
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Report
December 13, 2021
Since the Paris Agreement, many companies have committed to different levels of decarbonization in line with climate goals. From making net-zero commitments to setting targets...
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Report
September 30, 2021
In the last few years, it has become well accepted that climate risk is investment risk, and environmental, social and governance (ESG) linked assets have...
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Report
June 21, 2021
Expectations of long-term investors have expanded well beyond usual notions of their core purpose to include their impact on markets, society, and the environment. The...
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Report
December 21, 2018
Boards and executives of long-term funds, such as pension plans, sovereign wealth funds, and endowments, have a challenging problem. They need to manage those portfolios...
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Article
February 3, 2026
In 2025, activists launched a record 255 global campaigns, topping the prior peak from 2018 and rising about 5 percent year over year. Q3 alone...
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Article
November 25, 2025
Which is worse: missing a major disruption that creates a new long-term equilibrium, or overreacting to a temporary event that soon reverts to prior conditions?...
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Article
April 22, 2024
Today, private sector executives from across the globe find themselves using the same word to mean different things. “Sustainability” has become shorthand for mitigating and...
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Article
January 24, 2024
On 16 January 2024, FCLTGlobal convened its members in Davos alongside the World Economic Forum to discuss how to make long-term decisions despite the current...
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Article
October 19, 2023
Last month in Madrid, FCLTGlobal led a discussion at the International Forum of Sovereign Wealth Funds (IFSWF) on navigating disruptive megatrends.
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Article
June 13, 2023
Private equity plays a significant role in shaping economies and industries, and it must use its influence to accelerate the transition to a low-carbon future. ...
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Article
May 12, 2023
It’s trendy to bemoan the fact that a third of Americans don’t have enough slack in their monthly budget to cover a surprise $400 expense....
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Article
March 27, 2023
“Do we mean to hold businesses or paper?” The question is one of the most compelling to emerge from Davos this year because its implications are...
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Article
December 14, 2022
CPP Investments provides examples of why a focus on long-term outcomes and a multi-stakeholder approach to investing is a prerequisite to invest in the infrastructure...
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Article
November 15, 2022
With short-term pressures mounting, companies and investors are finding it more challenging than ever to focus on the long term.
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Article
August 2, 2022
FCLTGlobal reminds companies and their leaders that, despite the chop your ships are weathering, those who stay the course through uncertainty will be the ones...
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Article
April 22, 2022
Smart investors can build a net zero portfolio today, but you shouldn’t want them to. It won’t have a stellar risk-return profile, and it’s likely...
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Article
November 24, 2021
Will shorter holding periods have an impact on climate change efforts?
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Article
October 21, 2021
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August 23, 2021
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Article
May 27, 2021
Expectations placed on investors are ever-changing, can emerge from any of the institution’s many constituents, and extend beyond matters of law, regulation, or contracts.
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Article
May 13, 2021
On 28 April 2021, FCLTGlobal hosted an info session on the topic of quantifying the market value of corporate net-zero commitments. This conversation served as...
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Article
April 29, 2021
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March 30, 2021
On March 24th, 2021, FCLTGlobal led a risk focus group alongside Alison Taylor and Brian Harward, a team of behavioral scientists from Ethical Systems, an...
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Article
March 4, 2021
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Article
March 2, 2021
Focusing capital on long-term climate solutions via investment portfolio construction
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Article
February 25, 2021
Evaluating whether market reactions reflect the value of a corporate net-zero commitment in the short, medium, and long term
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February 1, 2021
Through the second phase of our risk research, FCLTGlobal hopes to learn from members why implementation is not happening, what is needed to increase it,...
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Article
January 25, 2021
In a decade-long low interest rate environment, riskier asset classes have seen accelerated asset gathering as savers chase yield.
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Article
December 4, 2020
Around the world, investors are facing an array of potential responsibilities. These potential responsibilities extend beyond an investor’s fiduciary duty or stewardship requirements and are...
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November 13, 2020
CFA’s Director of Investment Performance joins webinar on risk management to discuss order of performance reporting.
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Article
August 24, 2020
A panel of global investors discusses market recovery and planning for volatility.
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May 26, 2020
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May 6, 2020
On 30 April, FCLTGlobal held a webinar for a peer-to-peer discussion on managing risk to support long-term value creation, specifically in light of the ongoing...
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Article
April 7, 2020
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Article
March 30, 2020
Thinking about the long term in the midst of a global pandemic may seem counter-intuitive, or just downright impossible. Here are some top suggestions for...
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Article
November 11, 2019
FCLTGlobal's process for developing tools to address long-term investment risk includes interviewing risk management experts.
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Article
July 9, 2019
On 30 May, FCLTGlobal Members and guests met in Boston for a peer-to-peer discussion on managing risk to support long-term value creation. The Forum on Risk:...
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May 10, 2019
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April 1, 2019
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October 18, 2018
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October 9, 2018
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October 5, 2018
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September 25, 2018
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September 10, 2018
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Case Study
February 26, 2025
Cement production is highly energy-intensive and ubiquitous with infrastructure development. As Global Cement asserts, “There’s enough cement used every week to build a city the size of...
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Case Study
February 26, 2025
Carbon pricing has become a critical consideration in real estate investment, significantly influencing decision-making and long-term planning. For Hines, a global real estate investment manager...
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Case Study
February 28, 2024
Bain Capital’s enduring commitment to lasting impact has remained the heart of our work since our inception. We’ve sought to partner differently and help our...
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Case Study
February 28, 2024
One of the most valuable things long-term investors can do is to encourage the management of companies to invest for future growth even in the...
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Case Study
February 28, 2024
Now more than ever, collaboration across discipline and geography is critical, especially as the world navigates shared and ever more pressing challenges.
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Case Study
February 28, 2024
Within Asian economies, and indeed globally, the journey through structural change –– in demographics, digitization, climate transition, and the evolution of the consumer –– is...
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Case Study
February 28, 2024
The purpose of the Government Pension Fund Global is to safeguard and build financial wealth for future generations. We believe that long-term value creation for...
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Case Study
February 28, 2024
While our asset-level activities remain vital to delivering real world emissions reductions, our approach has evolved to include system-level actions towards stronger economic, environmental, and...
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Case Study
February 28, 2024
We are entering a new era of a permanently altered climate. Adapting to extreme weather conditions globally – while striving to mitigate the damage –...
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Case Study
February 28, 2024
Today’s economic and technological environments present challenging dynamics for many investors and software companies. But thanks to our focus on value creation, profitability, and innovation,...
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Case Study
February 28, 2024
The playbook for pension funds needs to evolve because the game has fundamentally changed. Pension investing used to draw parallels with running a marathon. It...
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Case Study
February 28, 2024
This article is featured in the 2024 FCLTGlobal Blue Book, a collection of real-world examples of how our members are putting long-term strategies into practice...
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Case Study
February 28, 2024
To support the acceleration towards net zero, Temasek’s investments and efforts span several key areas reflecting the real economy: food, water, waste, energy, materials, clean...
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Case Study
March 1, 2023
We believe that the winning businesses of tomorrow will be those which anticipate and respond to the huge changes shaping people’s lives across the world....
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Case Study
March 1, 2023
The climate crisis is one of the foremost challenges facing our society. We are already seeing the effects on our daily lives, ranging from intensifying...
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Case Study
March 1, 2023
From the push to reduce carbon emissions, to the regulation of environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues, to gender parity on corporate boards, investors are...
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March 1, 2023
We believe the ESG agenda and how we measure progress against it is a key driver of long-term value creation for all businesses.
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Case Study
March 1, 2023
In 2021, EQT launched EQT Future, a new strategy designed to guide EQT’s purpose-driven investment efforts into the next stage.
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Case Study
March 1, 2023
In 2013, when CPP Investments and McKinsey & Company launched the Focusing Capital on the Long Term initiative to advance practical actions to focus business...
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Case Study
March 1, 2023
At Blackstone we invest for the long-term on behalf of our investors, including over 100 million pensioners, and the communities in which we operate.
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March 1, 2023
At Baillie Gifford, we seek to be engaged, long-term owners of businesses. Our average holding period is over seven years and our preferred holding period...
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Case Study
March 1, 2023
As artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) began to disrupt industries around the world, it became obvious that investment managers would have to harness...
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Podcast
March 9, 2026
“The idea that somehow trade is going to stop or that international activity will stop is not the case at all… Patterns are changing… and...
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Podcast
April 29, 2025
"The capital requirements to capture the growth opportunities in these trends are so significant that […] they outstrip what is available from governments and […]...
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Podcast
February 18, 2025
“If we continue to focus on prevention, if prevention becomes a mandatory part of an insurance solution, then climate can be properly priced again and...
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Podcast
October 2, 2023
“If you really think about investing as pattern recognition, you see a bunch of dots and you connect them, and you see them before other...
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Podcast
September 12, 2023
OTPP's Jonathan Hausman joins the podcast to explore the firm's focus on long-term strategies and their perspectives on the ever-evolving global economy.
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Podcast
June 26, 2023
"We've created all sorts of noise around what is a fairly straightforward activity of deploying real capital in the real world into projects that create...
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Podcast
September 19, 2022
“What matters more in my opinion is the word that comes after you use the acronym ESG. Do we mean ESG factors? […] Do we...
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Podcast
July 5, 2022
“It is a very delicate balance – where do you cross the line from an issue that is actually material to long-term investment performance and...
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Podcast
April 3, 2022
“If we can find the Warren Buffet of a given area, it doesn't really matter what asset class it is. That type of talent applied...
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Podcast
November 8, 2021
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Podcast
October 25, 2021
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Podcast
June 14, 2021
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Podcast
June 1, 2021
Unilever is a household name and a global leader in consumer goods. Now, it is quickly becoming a global leader in sustainable business, committing to...
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Podcast
April 19, 2021
“Long-termism is our national ethos in Singapore.” Chow Kiat Lim, CEO of GIC, Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund, joins the podcast to share his views on...
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In the News
April 11, 2025
These days, markets are on a roller coaster, going to steep heights just to plunge again, with many investors acting like they are going around...
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In the News
November 20, 2023
Investors and corporations will arrive in Dubai for COP28 later this month, and the world is depending on them to recognize and address a paradox:...
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In the News
November 22, 2022
Regulators would do well to align climate transition plans with long-term strategy, or else companies will continue sidestepping the changes needed to actually move the...
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October 20, 2022
Many of today’s investors have been drilled in the basics of return and risk – or volatility, the traditional definition of “risk.” We know that...
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In the News
June 17, 2022
In order to strengthen their net-zero transitions, companies should articulate how targets fit into their future based on potential growth, showcase those targets in their...
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In the News
March 30, 2022
To direct private capital to address the complex and daunting challenges of the energy transition, climate risk disclosure needs to be standardised, mandatory and regulated...
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December 15, 2021
A recent webinar hosted by FCLTGlobal, the not-for profit that aims to focus capital on the long-term to support a sustainable economy, urged investors to...
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In the News
December 3, 2021
Recent UK government move could have implications for companies far beyond its borders, says Veena Ramani
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In the News
November 17, 2021
More specific view of how individual companies are tackling climate change will be needed
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In the News
October 4, 2021
On the face of it, climate commitments set the stage for capital to be deployed at scale to decarbonize the global economy. Yet the reality...
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March 15, 2021
Distant emissions pledges will ring hollow unless boards are held to account for progress now.
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November 12, 2020
"Transparency is the currency for trust and we have to get on with executing the strategy we have laid out and be transparent about it...
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August 27, 2020
FCLTGlobal CEO Sarah Williamson argues that the short-term ESG investing mindset in the U.S. will hinder growth in a new op-ed.
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April 14, 2020
Markets in disarray are where long-term investors make their money. Investing countercyclically – when many others without long-term liquidity are selling – is a clear...
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Toolkit
July 15, 2025
This toolkit highlights the shared practices of organizations that are proactively integrating climate considerations into strategy and capital allocation. Drawing on member examples, it outlines...
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Toolkit
July 15, 2025
This toolkit distills key lessons from investors and companies on how to integrate climate considerations into strategy and capital allocation. Framed as practical dos and...
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Toolkit
July 15, 2025
It is helpful to use carbon pricing in scenarios and simulations, rather than as a single, catch-all metric for decision-making. The following tools can...
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Toolkit
July 14, 2025
Carbon beta is a tool designed to measure transition risk in individual stocks and portfolios of stocks. It is a forward-looking measure that determines the extent...
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Toolkit
July 14, 2025
This toolkit focuses on indicators that align with already established investment methodologies and concepts, essentially building on the “finance language” and expertise that committees and...
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Toolkit
April 9, 2024
This toolkit outlines ten essential questions long-term investors can use to evaluate how companies are navigating geopolitical risk. By focusing on strategy, governance, operations, and...
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Toolkit
April 9, 2024
This toolkit offers a structured framework to help investment leaders assess and respond to geopolitical risks and opportunities across portfolios, reputation, and organizational operations. Through...
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Toolkit
April 9, 2024
This toolkit provides a practical set of questions and actions to help investment committees and boards navigate geopolitical uncertainty. Designed to support resilient portfolio construction...
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Toolkit
November 15, 2022
In November 2022, FCLTGlobal partnered with GIC to bring its unique roundtable meeting format to GIC Insights 2022. C-suite participants for this session, representing leading...
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Toolkit
July 19, 2022
FCLTGlobal has developed the following example statement to communicate externally about an investor’s responsibilities. Among other uses, it can be posted on organizations’ websites or...
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Toolkit
April 11, 2022
This toolkit provides a structured conversation guide to help asset owners update risk-appetite statements in light of climate risk and decarbonization commitments. By prompting discussion...
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Toolkit
April 11, 2022
This toolkit provides a structured conversation guide to help asset owners review and update their investment beliefs in light of decarbonization goals and climate risk....
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Toolkit
April 11, 2022
This toolkit outlines five core action areas investors can use to integrate decarbonization into long-term portfolio construction and governance. By aligning investment beliefs, risk appetite,...
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Toolkit
August 26, 2020
FCLTGLOBAL has developed this guide as an extension of the Risk Conversation Guide published in Balancing Act: Managing Risk Across Multiple Time Horizons.
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Toolkit
December 21, 2018
This toolkit provides a structured conversation guide to help asset owners update risk-appetite statements in light of climate risk and decarbonization commitments. By prompting discussion...
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Toolkit
December 21, 2018
Managing investment risk effectively requires balancing short-term uncertainty with long-term objectives, governance discipline, and organizational resilience.
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April 29, 2025
"The capital requirements to capture the growth opportunities in these trends are so significant that […] they outstrip what is available from governments and […]...
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Video
January 9, 2023
How does resilience factor into long-term performance?
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Video
December 7, 2022
This year's edition of FCLTCompass looks at the economics of recovery and observes how companies, investors, and national economies plan for a return to normalcy....
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Video
November 16, 2022
Sustainability has gained so much traction in finance that it’s reshaping the global flow of capital and creating a new class of corporate winners and...
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Video
January 5, 2022
Crises happen. Long-term investors are more exposed to them simply by virtue of their long holding periods. Their task cannot be to avoid crises, so...
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Video
January 5, 2022
FCLTGlobal’s eight-episode risk webinar series encourages implementation of long-term tools from Balancing Act: Managing Risk Across Multiple Time Horizons and offers continuing professional education for...
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Video
December 9, 2021
On 9 December, FCLTGlobal hosted a webinar for the launch of the 2021 edition of FCLTCompass, our annual report and interactive dashboard that analyzes 10+...
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Video
December 6, 2021
On 6 December, FCLTGlobal hosted a webinar with corporate and finance leaders following the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26). COP26 took place in...
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Video
May 21, 2021
The world’s infrastructure systems face critical challenges as we look to meet the needs of a growing, increasingly urban population while at the same time...
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Video
May 17, 2021
In this final episode of FCLTGlobal’s risk-webinar series, we turn our attention to why long-term institutions manage investment risk in a multi-horizon way: because it...
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Video
May 3, 2021
Crises happen. Long-term investors are more exposed to them simply by virtue of their long holding periods. Their task cannot be to avoid crises, so...
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April 30, 2021
In this final episode of FCLTGlobal’s risk-webinar series, we turn our attention to why long-term institutions manage investment risk in a multi-horizon way: because it...
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Video
April 14, 2021
A discussion from 14 April 2021 among top business leaders and institutional investors on the opportunities ahead to position the food and agriculture industry for...
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Video
March 4, 2021
Forthcoming research examines societal income distribution in the statistical sense – such as its volatility, skewness, and kurtosis – and relates it to the macro...
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February 10, 2021
Forthcoming research examines societal income distribution in the statistical sense – such as its volatility, skewness, and kurtosis – and relates it to the macro...
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January 14, 2021
“Time diversification” is a principle that an investor’s statistical probability of loss decreases as the holding period increases. Long-term investors may overinterpret this statistical principle...
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Video
January 13, 2021
“Time diversification” is a principle that an investor’s statistical probability of loss decreases as the holding period increases. Long-term investors may overinterpret this statistical principle...
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Video
November 11, 2020
Climate change is the largest systemic risk in the view of many long-term investors, and investors are pioneering ways to address this risk, including work...
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November 11, 2020
Climate change is the largest systemic risk in the view of many long-term investors, and investors are pioneering ways to address this risk, including work...
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Video
November 6, 2020
On Friday 6 November, FCLTGlobal and McKinsey & Company hosted the first panel in our virtual event series, "Investing in the Sustainable Transition." Larry Fink...
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Video
October 26, 2020
An interview with Diedre Ypma, Managing Director at Neuberger Berman
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October 14, 2020
Standard-setting and certification represent defaults of a profession, and for the investment risk profession these functions belong to the CFA Institute’s Global Investment Performance Standards...
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Video
October 14, 2020
Standard-setting and certification represent defaults of a profession, and for the investment risk profession these functions belong to the CFA Institute’s Global Investment Performance Standards...
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Video
October 12, 2020
For many investors, asset allocation begins with an estimate of volatility, producing the most stable portfolio of assets that still can earn the target return....
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September 9, 2020
For many investors, asset allocation begins with an estimate of volatility, producing the most stable portfolio of assets that still can earn the target return....
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Video
September 9, 2020
For many investors, asset allocation begins with an estimate of volatility, producing the most stable portfolio of assets that still can earn the target return....
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August 24, 2020
A panel of global investors discusses market recovery and planning for volatility.
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August 12, 2020
In the first installment of our new Risk Webinar Series, Ahren Estabrooks (Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan), Carol Geremia (MFS), and Daniel Godfrey (Federated Hermes) discussed...
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Video
March 23, 2020
Interviews from our members on how they assess, manage, and plan for long- and short-term portfolio risk.
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November 5, 2019
An interview with Will Hetherton, Head of Public Affairs & Strategic Relations at Future Fund, Australia’s sovereign wealth fund.
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Video
July 9, 2019
An interview with with Rocky Ieraci and Steven Richards from the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board.
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Video
July 9, 2019
An interview with with Fred Gjerstad from Washington State Investment Board.
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