Northumbrian Water Pension Scheme, Durham, England, hired Cardano as OCIO, a news release said Monday.
The £830 million ($1.1 billion) plan's trustees appointed Cardano to design and implement strategic asset allocation. Consultant Willis Towers Watson will continue to act as the trustee's investment consultant.
Cardano will initially implement sustainable equities, investment grade corporate bonds, and specialist allocations managed by active managers, as well as government bond and inflation overlays.
The firm will also manage the plan's liability hedging portfolio in-house on a segregated basis.
The new asset allocation will see the plan's equity and bond portfolios incorporate a broad range of ESG considerations, including green bonds.
"We wanted an OCIO who could offer a sophisticated strategy, flexible implementation and a collaborative approach to working with the scheme's stakeholders and other advisors," Duncan Willsher, the plan's trustee chairman, said in the release.
