Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan is planning to shut down its Hong Kong office as it pares its exposure to China, according to people familiar with the matter.
The Canadian fund that managed C$255.8 billion ($178.5 billion) as of mid-2024 announced its decision internally this week, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the matter is private.
“We will be optimizing our footprint in the Asia-Pacific region through our offices in Singapore and Mumbai, where we have teams focused across asset classes and regional markets,” Ontario Teachers’ spokesperson Dan Madge said in an emailed statement Wednesday. He added that the pension fund made the difficult decision to close the Hong Kong office and plans to wind down “on-the-ground operations” over the coming 18 months.
Some Hong Kong-based employees will be offered the opportunity to transfer to Singapore, while others will leave the firm, according to Madge.
The fund had 35 staff in the Hong Kong office as of September 2022. That number has since declined to about 20 employees, with the investment team mainly focused on private equity strategy.
Current Hong Kong-based employees include Cindy Yan, senior managing director for private capital direct investment in APAC, and Mei Ni Yang, managing director for private equity funds in APAC. In venture growth strategies, at least four people are on the team, according to the pension fund’s website.
The Ontario pension has taken several steps to reduce China exposure amid rising geopolitical tensions. In 2023, it shut down its Hong Kong-based China public equities team and also paused direct investments in private assets in China, people familiar said at the time.
Meanwhile, the firm is expanding its presence in other Asia markets. It moved into new offices in Singapore and Mumbai in 2022. “Today, our Hong Kong team primarily focuses on outward markets like Australia, New Zealand, Korea, and Japan,” Madge said, adding that these activities can be served out of Singapore, “which enables us to bring together teams currently split across two locations.”
Across APAC, the pension fund has more than 60 employees with C$22 billion gross investments in the region, according to its website. Ontario Teachers’ manages funds for 340,000 retired and working teachers and invests in more than 50 countries. The company is due to publish its 2024 annual report on March 20.
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Echo Wong, Cathy Chan and Layan Odeh, Bloomberg News
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