How do you measure the impact of global connections?

Perhaps it’s not by the number of institutions in the room or the trillions in assets represented, but by the quality of the conversations taking place behind closed doors and the willingness of beneficial owners to exchange insights, challenges, and ideas.

The Global Peer Financing Association (GPFA) was pleased to partner with the International Securities Lending Association (ISLA) to open its annual conference in Lisbon with an exclusive beneficial owner briefing.

This closed-door session brought together leading sovereign wealth funds, pension funds, and asset owners from around the world to discuss the evolving securities financing landscape. By creating a trusted forum for peer-to-peer dialogue, we continue to foster meaningful connections and support the responsible development of global securities financing markets.

Thank you again to our meeting hosts Matthew Brunette from Norges Bank Investment Management and Sharon Terry from L&G – Asset Management for leading the discussions and thank you to all participants who contributed their expertise and perspectives.

The GPFA Private Credit Discussion Group held its Q2 2026 meeting with a panel discussion on current events within the private credit asset class with members from peers from Canada and the United States. The panel discussed the maturing of the asset class, new asset types requiring private credit capital, and the importance of strong due diligence and structuring in credit investing.

Thanks to our panel moderator Ravipal Bains and panelist Jatinder M. from BCI and panelists Chris Prestigiacomo, CFA from State of Wisconsin Investment Board and Patience O. from Ontario Teachers'​ Pension Plan. Also, thank you to the Head of the GPFA Private Credit Discussion Group Jason Pearlstein from HOOPP (Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan) for organizing the session. The group is looking forward to the next session in Q4.

For any of the buy side peer community interested in private credit or other asset classes, please reach out to the GPFA to connect.

We are pleased to welcome Aware Super as the newest member of the Global Peer Financing Association (GPFA)!

As one of Australia's leading superannuation funds, Aware Super serves approximately 1.3 million members and manages more than A$235 billion in funds under management, helping individuals achieve better retirement outcomes through long-term, member-focused investing.

Aware Super's commitment to strong governance, long-term value creation, and delivering sustainable outcomes for its members aligns closely with GPFA's mission of fostering collaboration among the world's leading asset owners and investment professionals.

We look forward to the perspectives and expertise Aware Super will bring to our global community and are excited to support their engagement across GPFA programs and initiatives.

Please join us in welcoming Aware Super to GPFA!

An incredible moment for the GPFA community as we joined the Toronto Stock Exchange to close the market at the TMX Market Centre following our Regional Beneficial Owner Meeting in partnership with Canadian Securities Lending Association (CASLA) on 26 May.

The closing bell ceremony was a wonderful opportunity to celebrate the continued growth and engagement of the GPFA beneficial owner community across Canada and the broader global securities finance industry.

We were honored to hear remarks from GPFA Chair Robert Goobie CPA CMA from HOOPP (Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan) during the ceremony before members gathered for the official market close countdown and bell ringing.

GPFA would also like to extend a special thank you to Charles Lesaux, MBA from BCI and Ivoneke Taylor from Ontario Teachers'​ Pension Plan (OTPP), our regional leads in Canada, for their leadership, dedication, and continued support in helping strengthen GPFA’s presence and member engagement across the region.

Thank you as well to the Toronto Stock Exchange, Steve Everett and the rest of the TMX team for hosting this memorable experience, and to all members and industry participants who joined us for the celebration.

What a week - another outstanding gathering in Toronto!

GPFA was pleased to host our Regional Beneficial Owner Meeting in partnership with Canadian Securities Lending Association (CASLA) on Tuesday 26 May, bringing together members and industry peers for a day of engaging discussion, valuable market perspectives, and meaningful networking opportunities.

A sincere thank you to our host member firm, BMO Global Asset Management, for once again welcoming our beneficial owner group and supporting another successful event in Toronto. We were fortunate once again to hear from former Governor of the Bank of Canada, Stephen Poloz on the current economic climate. Thank you to Bipan Rai, Head of ETF and Alternative Strategy at BMO for moderating the session.

We were also honored to conclude the day at the TMX Market Centre where members of the GPFA community participated in the Toronto Stock Exchange closing bell ceremony — a memorable way to celebrate the strength and collaboration of our community.

Thank you as well to all speakers, moderators, and attendees who contributed their insights and participation throughout the meeting – Nick Chamie, CFA, ICD.D, IMCO, Millan Mulraine, OTPP, John Kwan, IMCO, Andrea Ruiz, SWIB, Bryce Shelton, CFA, OTPP, Mike Vainchtein, OPTrust, Chris Benish, SWIB and GPFA Board/Treasurer, Sara D., La Caisse, Lisa Mantello, Osler, Charles Lesaux, MBA, BIC and GPFA Regional Lead in Canada, Jesus Alva, BCI, Jean-Sébastien Leroux, Trans-Canada Capital, Prasanth Pugal, HOOPP.  Events like these continue to demonstrate the value of bringing together beneficial owners and market participants from across the industry.

Lastly, we could not have hosted such a successful meeting without the leadership from our regional leads in Canada, Ivoneke Taylor, OTPP and Charles Lesaux, MBA, BCI as well as Daniel Stanley, CFA, Marc Kitay, Jasmina Patel-Khatri, Satya Shrestha, and the rest of the team at BMO Global Asset Management for hosting such a successful gathering. Thank you again!

We appreciate the continued support from our members and partners and look forward to seeing many of you at upcoming GPFA events around the globe.

Up next for GPFA is the International Securities Lending Association (ISLA) conference in Lisbon. Join us 16 June for a closed-door beneficial owner meeting co-lead by, Matthew Brunette and Sharon Terry.  See you in Portugal!

This week, GPFA was pleased to host our New York Regional Beneficial Owner Meeting, bringing together beneficial owners and industry peers for a thoughtful exchange of ideas on several timely topics shaping today’s securities finance landscape.

A sincere thank you to GPFA member, GIC for graciously hosting the meeting at your New York office. We would also like to extend our appreciation to meeting co-leads Chris Benish from State of Wisconsin Investment Board and Jennifer Xu, CFA from GIC for leading the discussions and helping facilitate a highly engaging and valuable session.

Thank you to everyone who joined us this week. We look forward to continuing these important regional conversations across the beneficial owner community.

We’re pleased to share that the Global Peer Financing Association will once again partner with the International Securities Lending Association (ISLA) for a beneficial owner (closed-door) briefing during ISLA’s 33rd Annual Securities Finance & Collateral Management Conference in Lisbon, Portugal! This closed-door session taking place on Tuesday, 16 June will be co-lead by industry leaders, Matthew Brunette, Global Head of Financing at Norges Bank Investment Management and Sharon Terry, Securities Lending Specialist at L&G – Asset Management and will bring together some of the world’s largest sovereign wealth funds, pension funds, and asset managers for focused discussion on the evolving securities finance landscape, current market developments, and the issues shaping the year ahead. We look forward to welcoming all qualifying Beneficial Owner delegates to what promises to be another insightful and engaging discussion.

If you are interested in attending, please make sure you register for the main conference at the link below and then RSVP for the closed-door session at events@islaemea.org. Qualifying Beneficial Owners can attend the conference for free.

Creating community. That is one of the best things about bringing Global Peer Financing Association (GPFA) members together for networking across the regions. Watching our members deepen their relationships with other global buy side asset owners and expand the trust and transparency they have with one another is how we know there is value in the continued growth of GPFA. Thank you to all our GPFA members and other beneficial owner friends that joined together during the PASLA conference in Bangkok this week. We can’t wait to get together again soon! hashtag#gpfa hashtag#bettertogether hashtag#pasla

What happens when buy‑side peers come together with a shared vision?Years of peer‑to‑peer conversations and collaboration ultimately sparked the creation of the Global Peer Financing Association five years ago—a volunteer‑led, global not‑for‑profit committed to advancing the securities financing industry.In this anniversary podcast episode, Board Members Chris Benish, Robert Goobie CPA CMA, Mike Johnson , and Jerry May reflect on GPFA’s journey, the expansion of its membership, and the cross‑disciplinary working groups shaping its future.With more than 40 global members representing over $11T in assets, the momentum is only growing!Listen to the full discussion here: https://lnkd.in/eB7bAqsk

Our growth is global! We’re pleased to welcome Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF) as the newest member of the Global Peer Financing Association (GPFA) and our first member from Japan!

GPIF is one of the world’s largest public pension funds and we are thrilled to welcome them to our growing global beneficial owner network. We look forward to their participation in GPFA discussions, collaboration, and knowledge-sharing across the peer financing community.

Welcome GPIF to GPFA—we’re glad to have you as part of the community.

We’re pleased to announce the newest members of the GPFA Board of Directors:

Amy Borgquist (Armour), Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA)
Cherie Jeffries, State Board of Administration of Florida

Amy and Cherie bring exceptional experience and perspective to the GPFA, and we are excited to welcome them into their new leadership roles. Their contributions will help guide our strategic direction as GPFA continues to expand globally across the beneficial owner market.

We also want to extend our appreciation to all individuals who were nominated and to our membership for their continued engagement and support of the GPFA community.

We look forward to a productive and collaborative year with our newly elected Board members. Congratulations and thank you for all your support, Amy and Cherie!

In the latest episode of Peer Connections, Chris Benish, Senior Portfolio Manager at the State of Wisconsin Investment Board and GPFA Treasurer, sits down with Brock Bell, Director of Treasury at the Virginia Retirement System (VRS) to talk about VRS's asset allocation and their unique approach to leveraging. The conversation delves into various financing and liquidity management strategies, the rationale behind VRS's use of leverage, and the importance of diverse asset programs. They also cover swap capabilities, the necessary legal agreements for trading, and governance considerations.If you want to understand how a major pension fund uses innovative strategies to balance risk and opportunity, this episode is worth your time! Listen here: https://lnkd.in/e4qtP967

As we continue to grow, we are excited to announce that Charles Lesaux, MBA, Managing Director, Funding Capital Markets & Credit Investments at British Columbia Investment Management Corporation (BCI), and Ivoneke Taylor, Principal, Global Trading at Ontario Teachers'​ Pension Plan (OTPP), will be volunteering their time to co-lead the Global Peer Financing Association (GPFA) in Canada.

Canada currently makes up nearly 50% of GPFA’s membership base, and Charles and Ivoneke will play a key role in strengthening engagement and collaboration among our Canadian members while ensuring alignment with the global GPFA community.

GPFA is a volunteer-led, non-profit association for beneficial owners, by beneficial owners. Founded by four North American pension funds, GPFA has rapidly expanded to include many of the world’s largest institutional investors.

On behalf of the GPFA Board of Directors and all GPFA members, thank you Charles, Ivoneke, and the teams at OTPP and BCI for volunteering your time and expertise to support our growing buyside community!

GPFA was pleased to partner with ISLA Americas for the first time to kick off their annual conference in Florida today. This dedicated closed-door session brought together beneficial owners from across sectors for an open exchange on key challenges and opportunities shaping today’s market. Thank you to our meeting co-leads, Edwin M. Witham, CFA, Maryland State Retirement and Pension System and Lance Wargo, CALIFORNIA PUBLIC EMPLOYEES RETIREMENT SYSTEM (CalPERS) for guiding an engaging discussion that covered a range of timely topics. We’d also like to thank our guest speaker, Mark Faulkner, Credit Benchmark, for sharing valuable insights into current market trends.

Thank you to ISLA Americas again for the partnership and all who attended and contributed to another engaging and productive session.

We're thrilled to partner with ISLA Americas for the 2nd Annual Securities Finance & Collateral Management Conference in Miami, October 13-16!Please join us on October 14th for the Beneficial Owner Briefing (Closed-Door) to discuss specific challenges and opportunities facing beneficial owners in today’s market. For more details, please visit: https://lnkd.in/euPTBx9Q

When our Global Peer Financing Association (GPFA) Chair, Robert Goobie CPA CMA first had the idea to collaborate with other global pensions to found an industry association focused on securities financing for the buyside, by the buyside, he turned to Jim Keohane for support.

Five years later, and with well over US$12 trillion in assets represented in the room, this week our members had the pleasure of hearing Jim Keohane share his perspectives on pension management and how securities financing plays a key role in achieving investment goals.

Jim Keohane is the former President & CEO of HOOPP (Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan) and is currently a member of the Board of Directors for the Alberta Investment Management Corporation (AIMCo) and Trans-Canada Capital.

Jim Keohane, we thank you for taking your time this week to meet with our members in Montreal, but more importantly we thank you for your support and vision many years ago in believing pensions would benefit from joining together to advance our marketplace. 🙏🙏

Thank you also to Charles Lesaux, MBA for introducing Jim Keohane as this year’s Annual Meeting Keynote Speaker. And lastly, thank you to our Chair, Robert Goobie CPA CMA for leading Jim Keohane in an engaging discussion.

We can’t wait to see where we will all be and how much we will have grown five years from now!

Another day in Montreal, another day to showcase a world-leading pension’s approach to securities finance. Thank you to Francois Bellavance-Lecompte, Francis Gagné, and the rest of the team at PSP Investments | Investissements PSP for hosting the second day of our Annual Meeting.

Learning from one another and discussing challenges and opportunities as a global buyside beneficial owner community is what makes our entire industry better. We are better together.

Thank you. Merci beaucoup.