Sun Life Financial

Investment strategy is set at the enterprise level by CEO Kevin Strain and CFO Tim Deacon, with day-to-day management delegated to the CEOs of Sun Life's alternatives affiliates. BentallGreenOak is led by CEO Sonny Kalsi, InfraRed Capital Partners by CEO Werner von Guionneau, and Crescent Capital Group by co-founders Mark Attanasio and Jean-Marc Chapus. Each affiliate operates with its own investment committee and independent fiduciary governance, though Sun Life's general account CIO oversees the flow of insurance assets into these platforms.

Sourcing relies on the embedded origination networks of its specialist subsidiaries. BentallGreenOak, with over 30 offices globally, originates off-market real estate transactions through local operating partners. InfraRed uses a public-private procurement model in Europe and North America, often co-investing alongside sovereign wealth funds and pension systems. The insurance parent's C$900 billion general account gives Sun Life's platforms an anchor-investor advantage that external GPs cannot replicate, which frequently opens doors to larger, more competitive deal processes.

It is functionally both. The parent company is a regulated Canadian insurer that reports under IFRS 17, but SLC Management — its institutional asset management division — operates as a standalone entity that manages capital for third-party clients including pensions, endowments, and other insurers. Roughly 40% of SLC's assets under management come from external clients. This dual structure lets Sun Life retain insurance float for its general account while competing for fee-based mandates on performance alone.

Sun Life does both, but the balance tilts heavily toward direct ownership and co-investment structures. The real estate platform acquires properties directly through BentallGreenOak-managed vehicles and separate accounts. InfraRed runs both closed-end commingled funds and co-investment clubs for large LPs. Crescent Capital operates commingled private credit funds accessible to outside institutional investors. Sun Life's general account is often the largest LP in its own affiliates' funds, alongside a growing base of third-party institutional commitments.

Sun Life actively co-invests but almost exclusively through the relationships housed inside its own SLC Management ecosystem. BentallGreenOak, InfraRed, and Crescent each run co-investment programs that give large institutional clients side-by-side exposure with Sun Life's balance sheet. The firm rarely co-invests with external managers outside of these controlled platforms, preferring the governance and fee efficiency of its captive general partners.

Sun Life is likely the largest institutional real estate owner among Canadian insurers measured by total assets under management. BentallGreenOak manages over $80 billion in real estate globally, exceeding the direct real estate portfolios of Manulife and Great-West Lifeco. Sun Life's portfolio skews heavily toward core, income-producing assets in major North American and European gateway cities, with a smaller opportunistic allocation to Asian markets through joint ventures in Hong Kong and Singapore.

Sun Life runs a corporate contributions program at the parent level, focused primarily on diabetes prevention and health equity through a partnership with the American Diabetes Association. The Sun Life Foundation in the Philippines operates as a separate non-profit entity funding education and disaster relief programs. These philanthropic arms are firewalled from SLC Management's investment operations and are funded from corporate earnings rather than client assets, though they occasionally share the Sun Life brand in community-facing programs.