Investment policy
The Stichting Heineken Pensioenfonds (HPF) manages pension assets of approximately EUR 4.5 billion for its participants employed by Heineken Beheer Nederland B.V. and affiliates.
Our aim is to ensure that the pensions promised by the employer can be paid out in due course. Consequently, the capital of the HPF must be sufficient to meet the pension commitments in the long term. Received contributions and income from investments are therefore meticulously (re)invested. In order to keep contributions as low as possible the HPF focuses its efforts on achieving the highest possible return from the invested capital at responsible/acceptable risks. In other words: the HPF dies not strive to achieve return maximisation but return optimisation.
The investment policy pursued by the HPF is based on a long-term perspective. This long-term perspective is geared to the commitments of the HPF that ensue from the pension scheme.
Pension commitments change due to salary increases, adjustment of pensions in payment (indexation), demographic trends (including the ageing population), etc. These changes are calculated in a so-called ALM study; an Asset Liability Management study.
An ALM study involves producing a model that compares future pension commitments and investments. Other external factors and projections also play a role in this model. In this way the HPF determines which long-term risks it can and wishes to accept, and brings its investments policy into line. The ALM study is brought up to date every three years.
ALM & strategic investments policy
Aided by the ALM study and the established investment beliefs, the Board establishes the ALM investments policy. In doing so, account is taken with the fund’s risk attitude. Both the employer and the employees are represented on the HPF Board. The Board is also advised by the Investment Committee.
The Board determines its strategic investment policy on the basis of the ALM study. The strategic policy is set out in the Investments Plan and in principle is fixed for the period of one year.
The distribution of funds over the various investment categories, such as shares, real estate and fixed interest assets (bonds) is set out in the investment policy. Restrictions, criteria and objectives are also included in the investment policy.
Current investment policy
In addition to the ALM and strategic policy the HPF has a current investment policy in place. The Board has established ranges within which the current investment policy can deviate from the neutral assessments. ‘Automatic rebalancing unless’ applies to the current investment policy. This means that a decision is taken each quarter as to whether the upper and/or lower limits have been reached, if so the investments are rebalanced (re-adjusted) in accordance with fixed rules. The Board has delegated the current investment policy (within set limits and restrictions) to the Investment Committee. The administering body has been granted an implementation mandate by the Board.
In principle, investments are contracted out to external asset managers, with the exception of the operational tasks the Board has explicitly mandated to the administering body. For the appointment and implementation of external asset managers the fund follows a set procedure which is drawn up by the Board. The pension fund also has a procedure in place for monitoring and evaluating external managers, and also the pension fund’s risks are monitored extensively (e.g. interest rate risks, currency risks, etc.).