Markets
Ranked: The World’s 100 Biggest Pension Funds
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Ranked: The World’s 100 Biggest Pension Funds
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Despite economic uncertainty, pension funds saw relatively strong growth in 2021. The world’s 100 biggest pension funds are worth over $17 trillion in total, an increase of 8.5% over the previous year.
This graphic uses data from the Thinking Ahead Institute to rank the world’s biggest pension funds, and where they are located.
What is a Pension Fund?
A pension fund is a fund that is designed to provide retirement income. This ranking covers four different types:
- Sovereign funds: Funds controlled directly by the state. This ranking only includes sovereign funds that are established by national authorities.
- Public sector funds: Funds that cover public sector workers, such as government employees and teachers, in provincial or state sponsored plans.
- Private independent funds: Funds controlled by private sector organizations that are authorized to manage pension plans from different employers.
- Corporate funds: Funds that cover workers in company sponsored pension plans.
Among the largest funds, public sector funds are the most common.
The Largest Pension Funds, Ranked
Here are the top 100 pension funds, organized from largest to smallest.
Rank | Fund | Market | Total Assets |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Government Pension Investment Fund | 🇯🇵 Japan | $1.7T |
2 | Government Pension Fund | 🇳🇴 Norway | $1.4T |
3 | National Pension | 🇰🇷 South Korea | $798.0B |
4 | Federal Retirement Thrift | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $774.2B |
5 | ABP | 🇳🇱 Netherlands | $630.4B |
6 | California Public Employees | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $496.8B |
7 | Canada Pension | 🇨🇦 Canada | $426.7B |
8 | National Social Security | 🇨🇳 China | $406.8B |
9 | Central Provident Fund | 🇸🇬 Singapore | $375.0B |
10 | PFZW | 🇳🇱 Netherlands | $315.5B |
11 | California State Teachers | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $313.9B |
12 | New York State Common | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $267.8B |
13 | New York City Retirement | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $266.7B |
14 | Local Government Officials | 🇯🇵 Japan | $248.6B |
15 | Employees Provident Fund | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | $242.6B |
16 | Florida State Board | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $213.8B |
17 | Texas Teachers | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $196.7B |
18 | Ontario Teachers | 🇨🇦 Canada | $191.1B |
19 | National Wealth Fund | 🇷🇺 Russia | $180.7B |
20 | AustralianSuper | 🇦🇺 Australia | $169.1B |
21 | Labor Pension Fund | 🇹🇼 Taiwan | $168.9B |
22 | Washington State Board | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $161.5B |
23 | Public Institute for Social Security | 🇰🇼 Kuwait | $160.0B |
24 | ATP | 🇩🇰 Denmark | $155.4B |
25 | Wisconsin Investment Board | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $147.9B |
26 | Future Fund | 🇦🇺 Australia | $147.9B |
27 | Boeing | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $147.2B |
28 | Employees' Provident | 🇮🇳 India | $145.0B |
29 | New York State Teachers | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $144.4B |
30 | North Carolina | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $137.1B |
31 | Alecta | 🇸🇪 Sweden | $136.7B |
32 | GEPF | 🇿🇦 South Africa | $129.1B |
33 | California University | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $125.3B |
34 | Bayerische Versorgungskammer | 🇩🇪 Germany | $122.0B |
35 | Ohio Public Employees | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $121.6B |
36 | AT&T | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $119.5B |
37 | Public Service Pension Plan | 🇨🇦 Canada | $117.9B |
38 | National Federation of Mutual Aid | 🇯🇵 Japan | $117.1B |
39 | Metaal/tech. Bedrijven | 🇳🇱 Netherlands | $115.8B |
40 | IBM | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $115.4B |
41 | Universities Superannuation | 🇬🇧 UK | $111.2B |
42 | Virginia Retirement | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $110.0B |
43 | Pension Fund Association | 🇯🇵 Japan | $109.8B |
44 | Raytheon Technologies | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $108.9B |
45 | Michigan Retirement | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $108.0B |
46 | Aware Super | 🇦🇺 Australia | $107.5B |
47 | New Jersey | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $104.5B |
48 | Minnesota State Board | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $102.9B |
49 | PFA Pension | 🇩🇰 Denmark | $102.7B |
50 | Kaiser | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $101.0B |
51 | Georgia Teachers | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $100.9B |
52 | Oregon Public Employees | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $100.4B |
53 | Massachusetts PRIM | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $98.5B |
54 | Qsuper | 🇦🇺 Australia | $96.5B |
55 | General Motors | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $96.1B |
56 | Ontario Municipal Employees | 🇨🇦 Canada | $95.7B |
57 | Ohio State Teachers | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $95.1B |
58 | AP Fonden 7 | 🇸🇪 Sweden | $94.4B |
59 | Healthcare of Ontario | 🇨🇦 Canada | $90.5B |
60 | General Electric | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $90.5B |
61 | Employees' Pension Fund | 🇮🇳 India | $89.5B |
62 | Bouwnijverheid | 🇳🇱 Netherlands | $88.5B |
63 | UPS | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $86.8B |
64 | United Nations Joint Staff | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $86.2B |
65 | Lockheed Martin | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $85.7B |
66 | Quebec Pension | 🇨🇦 Canada | $81.4B |
67 | National Public Service | 🇯🇵 Japan | $79.9B |
68 | Tennessee Consolidated | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $79.0B |
69 | Royal Bank of Scotland Group | 🇬🇧 UK | $78.3B |
70 | Bank of America | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $76.3B |
71 | BT Group | 🇬🇧 UK | $74.3B |
72 | Keva | 🇫🇮 Finland | $73.3B |
73 | Ford | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $72.8B |
74 | PME | 🇳🇱 Netherlands | $72.7B |
75 | Los Angeles County Employees | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $72.7B |
76 | Quebec Government & Public | 🇨🇦 Canada | $72.4B |
77 | UniSuper | 🇦🇺 Australia | $72.1B |
78 | Northrop Grumman | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $72.0B |
79 | Pennsylvania School Employees | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $70.4B |
80 | Lloyds Banking Group | 🇬🇧 UK | $69.7B |
81 | Ilmarinen | 🇫🇮 Finland | $69.1B |
82 | Colorado Employees | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $68.6B |
83 | Maryland State Retirement | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $68.5B |
84 | AMF Pension | 🇸🇪 Sweden | $67.3B |
85 | Varma | 🇫🇮 Finland | $67.1B |
86 | Wells Fargo | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $66.0B |
87 | Sunsuper | 🇦🇺 Australia | $66.0B |
88 | Verizon | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $64.1B |
89 | Illinois Teachers | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $64.0B |
90 | J.P. Morgan Chase | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $62.8B |
91 | Electricity Supply Pension | 🇬🇧 UK | $62.5B |
92 | FedEx | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $60.7B |
93 | Nevada Public Employees | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $58.8B |
94 | B.C. Municipal | 🇨🇦 Canada | $58.7B |
95 | AP Fonden 4 | 🇸🇪 Sweden | $57.7B |
96 | Missouri Schools & Education | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $57.0B |
97 | AP Fonden 3 | 🇸🇪 Sweden | $55.9B |
98 | Social Insurance Funds | 🇻🇳 Vietnam | $55.7B |
99 | Organization for Workers | 🇯🇵 Japan | $55.6B |
100 | Illinois Municipal | 🇺🇸 U.S. | $54.9B |
U.S. fund data are as of Sep. 30, 2021, and non-U.S. fund data are as of Dec. 31, 2021. There are some exceptions as noted in the graphic footnotes.
Japan’s Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF) is the largest in the ranking for the 21st year in a row. For a time, the fund was the largest holder of domestic stocks in Japan, though the Bank of Japan has since taken that title. Given its enormous size, investors closely follow the GPIF’s actions. For instance, the fund made headlines for deciding to start investing in startups, because the move could entice other pensions to make similar investments.
America is home to 47 funds on the list, including the largest public sector fund: the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP), overseen by the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board. Because of its large financial influence, both political parties have been accused of using it as a political tool. Democrats have pushed to divest assets in fossil fuel companies, while Republicans have proposed blocking investment in Chinese-owned companies.
Russia’s National Wealth Fund comes in at number 19 on the list. The fund is designed to support the public pension system and help balance the budget as needed. With Russia’s economy facing difficulties amid the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the government has also used it as a rainy day fund. For instance, Russia has set aside $23 billion from the fund to replace foreign aircraft with domestic models, because Western sanctions have made it difficult to source replacement parts for foreign planes.
The Future of Pension Funds
The biggest pension funds can have a large influence in the market because of their size. Of course, they are also responsible for providing retirement income to millions of people. Pension funds face a variety of challenges in order to reach their goals:
- Geopolitical conflict creates volatility and uncertainty
- High inflation and low interest rates (relative to long-term averages) limit return potential
- Aging populations mean more withdrawals and less fund contributions
Some pension funds are turning to alternative assets, such as private equity, in pursuit of more diversification and higher returns. Of course, these investments can also carry more risk.
Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, number 18 on the list, invested $95 million in the now-bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange FTX. The plan made the investment through its venture growth platform, to “gain small-scale exposure to an emerging area in the financial technology sector.”
In this case, the investment’s failure is expected to have a minimal impact given it only made up 0.05% of the plan’s net assets. However, it does highlight the challenges pension funds face to generate sufficient returns in a variety of macroeconomic environments.
Markets
Recession Risk: Which Sectors are Least Vulnerable?
We show the sectors with the lowest exposure to recession risk—and the factors that drive their performance.

Recession Risk: Which Sectors are Least Vulnerable?
This was originally posted on Advisor Channel. Sign up to the free mailing list to get beautiful visualizations on financial markets that help advisors and their clients.
In the context of a potential recession, some sectors may be in better shape than others.
They share several fundamental qualities, including:
- Less cyclical exposure
- Lower rate sensitivity
- Higher cash levels
- Lower capital expenditures
With this in mind, the above chart looks at the sectors most resilient to recession risk and rising costs, using data from Allianz Trade.
Recession Risk, by Sector
As slower growth and rising rates put pressure on corporate margins and the cost of capital, we can see in the table below that this has impacted some sectors more than others in the last year:
Sector | Margin (p.p. change) |
---|---|
🛒 Retail | -0.3 |
📝 Paper | -0.8 |
🏡 Household Equipment | -0.9 |
🚜 Agrifood | -0.9 |
⛏️ Metals | -0.9 |
🚗 Automotive Manufacturers | -1.1 |
🏭 Machinery & Equipment | -1.1 |
🧪 Chemicals | -1.2 |
🏥 Pharmaceuticals | -1.8 |
🖥️ Computers & Telecom | -2.0 |
👷 Construction | -5.7 |
*Percentage point changes 2021- 2022.
Generally speaking, the retail sector has been shielded from recession risk and higher prices. In 2023, accelerated consumer spending and a strong labor market has supported retail sales, which have trended higher since 2021. Consumer spending makes up roughly two-thirds of the U.S. economy.
Sectors including chemicals and pharmaceuticals have traditionally been more resistant to market turbulence, but have fared worse than others more recently.
In theory, sectors including construction, metals, and automotives are often rate-sensitive and have high capital expenditures. Yet, what we have seen in the last year is that many of these sectors have been able to withstand margin pressures fairly well in spite of tightening credit conditions as seen in the table above.
What to Watch: Corporate Margins in Perspective
One salient feature of the current market environment is that corporate profit margins have approached historic highs.
As the above chart shows, after-tax profit margins for non-financial corporations hovered over 14% in 2022, the highest post-WWII. In fact, this trend has been increasing over the past two decades.
According to a recent paper, firms have used their market power to increase prices. As a result, this offset margin pressures, even as sales volume declined.
Overall, we can see that corporate profit margins are higher than pre-pandemic levels. Sectors focused on essential goods to the consumer were able to make price hikes as consumers purchased familiar brands and products.
Adding to stronger margins were demand shocks that stemmed from supply chain disruptions. The auto sector, for example, saw companies raise prices without the fear of diminishing market share. All of these factors have likely built up a buffer to help reduce future recession risk.
Sector Fundamentals Looking Ahead
How are corporate metrics looking in 2023?
In the first quarter of 2023, S&P 500 earnings fell almost 4%. It was the second consecutive quarter of declining earnings for the index. Despite slower growth, the S&P 500 is up roughly 15% from lows seen in October.
Yet according to an April survey from the Bank of America, global fund managers are overwhelmingly bearish, highlighting contradictions in the market.
For health care and utilities sectors, the vast majority of companies in the index are beating revenue estimates in 2023. Over the last 30 years, these defensive sectors have also tended to outperform other sectors during a downturn, along with consumer staples. Investors seek them out due to their strong balance sheets and profitability during market stress.
S&P 500 Sector | Percent of Companies With Revenues Above Estimates (Q1 2023) |
---|---|
Health Care | 90% |
Utilities | 88% |
Consumer Discretionary | 81% |
Real Estate | 81% |
Information Technology | 78% |
Industrials | 78% |
Consumer Staples | 74% |
Energy | 70% |
Financials | 65% |
Communication Services | 58% |
Materials | 31% |
Source: Factset
Cyclical sectors, such as financials and industrials tend to perform worse. We can see this today with turmoil in the banking system, as bank stocks remain sensitive to interest rate hikes. Making matters worse, the spillover from rising rates may still take time to materialize.
Defensive sectors like health care, staples, and utilities could be less vulnerable to recession risk. Lower correlation to economic cycles, lower rate-sensitivity, higher cash buffers, and lower capital expenditures are all key factors that support their resilience.
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