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CAAT Pension Plan
Toronto-based CAAT Pension Plan manages $23.3B for 125,000+ members across 800 employers with a 124% funded ratio and a permanent capital model.
CAAT Pension Plan
CAAT Pension Plan launched in 1967 to provide defined benefit pensions for Ontario's college employees. Over six decades, the Plan diversified its employer base well beyond academia, onboarding over 800 participating employers across sectors including healthcare, professional services, and government. Founding energy traces to Derek Dobson, who served as CEO until March 2026 and oversaw the Plan's transformation into a multi-industry, multi-employer arrangement. The Plan's funding discipline is exceptional: as of the 2025 valuation, CAAT reported a 124% funded ratio on a going-concern basis with $6.7 billion in funding reserves. CAAT deploys capital across a deliberately broad set of asset classes. The real assets portfolio includes direct stakes in Canadian commercial and mixed-use properties such as 100 University Avenue in Toronto, alongside US and UK commercial property through vehicles with Carlyle, Greystone, and abrdn. Infrastructure holdings span Pattern Energy wind assets in Ontario and New Mexico, global energy-transition projects, and the Teranet land-registry system in Ontario. The Plan also runs dedicated commodity and farmland portfolios — including a Canadian Farmland Fund and a North American Greenhouse Fund — while participating in private credit, distressed debt, secondaries, and venture-stage deals. The venture strategy is generalist, spanning seed through late-stage, with co-investment and direct commitments documented in the Plan's annual reporting. While the total team size is not publicly disclosed, the Plan's governance structure is lean by Canadian pension standards. As of mid-2026, Kevin Fahey acts as both CEO and CIO, with Jillian Kennedy as COO and Evan Howard as Chief Pension Officer. The C-suite transition follows the March 2026 resignation of Derek Dobson, who had served as CEO for roughly three decades. CAAT is an active member of the Pension Investment Association of Canada — former CIO Asif Haque served as PIAC Chair — and is a signatory to the UN-supported Principles for Responsible Investment since 2015. The Plan also endorses the ILPA Private Equity Principles, reinforcing its alignment with institutional best practices in private-market investing. The Plan's structural edge is its multi-employer, defined benefit architecture. By pooling liabilities and assets across 800 unrelated employers, CAAT achieves scale and cost efficiencies that single-employer plans cannot match. This pooled model, combined with a permanent capital base and no retail redemptions, allows the investment team to lean into illiquid private assets without the liquidity constraints that shape most Canadian pension portfolios. The result is a funding ratio and reserve cushion that provide genuine staying power through market cycles.
General information
Firm type
Pension Fund
Year founded
1967
AUM
$23.3B (Altss estimate)
Location
Region
North America
Country
Canada
City
Toronto
Corporate office
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Principals
Kevin Fahey
Acting CEO and Chief Investment Officer
Jillian Kennedy
Chief Operating Officer
Evan Howard
Chief Pension Officer
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who makes the investment decisions at CAAT Pension Plan?
As of mid-2026, Kevin Fahey holds both the Acting CEO and CIO roles, giving him oversight of the entire investment program. The Plan previously split the roles, with Asif Haque serving as CIO under CEO Derek Dobson until Dobson's March 2026 resignation. Haque was a prominent voice in Canadian institutional circles, chairing the Pension Investment Association of Canada during his tenure.
How does CAAT's multi-employer structure affect its investment strategy?
By pooling over 800 employers into a single defined benefit plan, CAAT achieves significant scale and cost savings while diversifying its liability pool across 20 industries. This structure gives the investment team a permanent capital base — members cannot withdraw their pensions — allowing the Plan to allocate heavily to illiquid private assets without worrying about redemption risk. The 2025 valuation reported a 124% funded ratio, giving the Plan meaningful buffer to ride out market downturns.
Does CAAT invest directly or through external managers?
CAAT uses a hybrid model. In real estate and infrastructure, the Plan holds direct stakes — such as its ownership of 100 University Avenue in Toronto and interests in Pattern Energy wind assets — but also commits to external funds with Carlyle, Greystone, and abrdn. The private credit, venture, and distressed debt strategies typically run through fund commitments and co-investments alongside external GPs.
What sectors does CAAT avoid?
CAAT does not publicly list excluded sectors, but its signatory status to the UN-supported Principles for Responsible Investment since 2015 and its Canadian Coalition for Good Governance membership suggest ESG screens are applied. The publicly disclosed portfolio emphasizes real assets, infrastructure, and farmland, with no material exposure to extractive industries or controversial weapons visible in the known asset list.
How is CAAT's governance structured?
CAAT operates under a board of trustees appointed by plan sponsors and members, with day-to-day oversight from a C-suite led by the CEO and CIO — currently a single individual, Kevin Fahey. The COO, Jillian Kennedy, handles operations, and Evan Howard serves as Chief Pension Officer. The Plan endorses the ILPA Private Equity Principles and is active in PIAC, signaling alignment with institutional governance norms.
What is CAAT's known posture on direct co-investments?
CAAT actively co-invests alongside external managers, particularly in private equity and infrastructure. While individual co-investment names are not routinely disclosed, the Plan's strategy documentation lists co-investment and direct commitments as core implementation methods. The ILPA endorsement further suggests the Plan negotiates for co-investment rights in its fund commitments.
What is the DBplus plan, and how does it relate to CAAT's investment portfolio?
DBplus is CAAT's defined benefit plan product for employers outside the original Ontario college system. It offers cost certainty for employers and lifetime pension income for members, which feeds into the same pooled investment portfolio as the legacy Plan. The asset pool backing both the legacy and DBplus plans is managed as a single portfolio, giving DBplus members access to the same private-asset exposure and scale benefits.
Profile maintained by Altss using OSINT (open-source intelligence), regulatory filings, licensed data partners, and verified direct submissions. Read the methodology. Last updated: . Continuous refresh with full update cycles at least every 30 days.
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