The investment management arm of the Canada Pension Plan (CPP) announced Thursday that it earned a net return of 7.8 per cent in fiscal 2026, underperforming its benchmark for the third consecutive year.
The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) said assets under management grew to $793.3 billion in the year ended March 31, versus $714.4 billion in fiscal 2025.
Relative to the benchmark portfolios, which measure the value of CPPIB’s active investment strategy, the fund underperformed by 5.4 per cent.
Chief executive officer John Graham said the overall results were impacted by a period of geopolitical uncertainty and volatility in the markets.
At the same time, investments in public equities were a key driver of performance, particularly in the U.S., where big tech stocks continued to deliver impressive returns.
“What matters most for a pension fund serving generations of Canadians is long-term performance, and over the past decade our investment programs have contributed positively to the Fund’s returns,” Graham said in a news release.
He also emphasized that Canada’s independent chief actuary has found that the CPP is financially sustainable for the next 75 years.
The fund’s 10-year return outperformed the benchmark portfolios by 0.7 per cent.
The Star recently reported that the CPPIB has changed the way it measures success, making past relative performance look better and leading to higher performance-based compensation for staff in the 2025 fiscal year.
In fiscal 2026, Graham’s total compensation jumped to $6.9 million from $6.4 million the year before.
This is a developing story.
