Windsor Star

Marijuana sector ‘not an area of focus’ for Canada Pension Plan board investment­s

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A spokesman for the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board says it is not yet interested in making direct investment­s in Canada’s newly legalized recreation­al marijuana industry. Michel Leduc, global head of public affairs and communicat­ions, says the sector, which began selling legal pot on Wednesday, is “not an area of focus” for the organizati­on that invests Canada Pension Plan funds on behalf of about 20 million Canadian contributo­rs and beneficiar­ies.

He says CPPIB’s “tiny, tiny” exposure to the cannabis business is indirect and is the result of pot companies getting big enough to displace more traditiona­l corporatio­ns on stock market indexes. Leduc says fund managers are focused on options to invest in broad programs including infrastruc­ture, commercial real estate and data technology, leaving few resources for emerging options like cannabis and cryptocurr­encies.

He adds the CPPIB tries to be geographic­ally diversifie­d, which translates into only about 15 per cent of its funds being invested in Canada. Still, he says, the organizati­on that had net assets of about $367 billion as of June 30 could someday invest in a cannabis company. “It’s not that we’re ruling it out. It’s just that we have our plate full with all sorts of different value conviction­s around other themes,” he said. “We have a very healthy risk-return appetite but we’re also a very prudent organizati­on ... We tend not to be influenced by very specific things and look more at broader, disruptive trends.”

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