State Street Corporation today announced that its service contract with the National Pension Service of Korea (NPS), the world’s third largest pension fund^[1], has been renewed.  State Street will continue to provide back-office and middle-office services for the NPS’ global equity and alternatives portfolios which have KRW 222 trillion (USD 195 billion) and KRW 49 trillion (USD 43 billion) assets under management respectively^[2].

“We are excited to be continuing our long-term partnership with the NPS,” said Ian Martin, global head of Asset Owner Segment at State Street. “Over the past decade, the NPS has diversified its investment portfolio by raising allocations to foreign and alternative assets. Searching for returns across multiple asset classes requires a fresh approach to mitigating risk and managing data. We are proud to be helping the NPS harmonize and capitalize on data. This reappointment underscores our capabilities in terms of supporting pension funds to manage risk effectively, drive operational efficiency, balance liquidity and achieve better outcomes for their members.”

State Street has been providing custody, fund accounting, performance and analytics, mandate compliance and securities lending services to the NPS’ global equity and alternatives portfolio since 2014. In 2018, the NPS appointed State Street to support its middle-office operations, including Investment Book of Record (IBOR) services, transaction management, trade processing and data consolidation and customization services.

“Over the past seven years, we have built a strong partnership with the NPS based not only our capabilities but also on our focus on continuous innovation and commitment to prioritize environmental, social and governance (ESG),” said Mostapha Tahiri, chief executive officer for Asia Pacific at State Street. “Sustainability is one of the six investment principles of the NPS and it is also a core value for State Street. We embed ESG principles into everything we do to create a more sustainable future for our business and the communities we serve. Many leading institutional investors in Asia Pacific, like the NPS, have been incorporating ESG factors into their investment processes. In the fast-paced, ever-changing financial services industry, we innovate constantly to help our clients stay abreast of and manage critical business issues.”

State Street services more than 500 asset owners across pensions, corporations, endowments and foundations globally. Its asset owner solutions range from asset management, liquidity, investment operations and global custody, to institutional accounting, and data and analytics.