SINGAPORE and TORONTO, Oct. 24, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- OMERS, the pension plan for municipal workers in the province of Ontario, Canada, today announced that it will open an office in Singapore in January 2018.
“OMERS is proud to establish a presence in Singapore, which is recognized internationally as a major financial hub,” said Michael Latimer, President and CEO of OMERS. “We appreciate the many distinct advantages Singapore offers, including the deep expertise of its financial services community, ease of doing business, world-class infrastructure, and connectivity to the rest of Asia,” he added.
Bringing the OMERS presence to Singapore is part of a multi-year strategy being carried out by OMERS to identify promising investment opportunities in emerging markets. At the end of 2016, the geographic distribution of OMERS holdings saw 40% of its assets in Canada, 37% in the US, 17% in Europe and 6% in other parts of the world.
“Our decision to locate in Singapore is consistent with our overall effort to further diversify OMERS global investment holdings,” said Michael Rolland, Chief Investment Officer, OMERS Private Markets, appointed by OMERS to lead the development of the company’s presence in Singapore. “Earlier this year, our OMERS Infrastructure team made its first-ever direct investment in South America. Also in 2017, Oxford Properties, OMERS real estate arm, became a co-investor in Berlin’s Sony Center, marking its first investment in Germany. In 2016, OMERS Infrastructure made its first major investment in Australia, in the Port of Melbourne. This is in addition to ongoing global mergers and acquisitions completed by various companies in OMERS Private Equity’s portfolio.”
“Our engagement in Singapore begins with many strong business and government relationships in the region,” said Mr. Latimer. “The opening of the Singapore office demonstrates the potential we see in the Asia-Pacific region, both from the perspective of making direct investments and from cultivating new investment partners. It is the logical next step in evolving our international footprint,” he said.
The OMERS office in Singapore will be located at One Raffles Quay and staffed by accomplished investment professionals representing the organization’s deep expertise in capital markets, infrastructure, private equity and real estate. Its work will complement the success of the existing OMERS Infrastructure office located in Sydney, Australia.
About OMERS:
Founded in 1962, OMERS is one of Canada’s largest defined benefit pension plans, with more than $85 billion in net assets, as at December 31, 2016. OMERS invests and administers pensions for more than 470,000 members from municipalities, school boards, emergency services and local agencies across Ontario. OMERS has employees in Toronto and other major cities across North America, the U.K., Europe and Australia – originating and managing a diversified portfolio of investments in public markets, private equity, infrastructure and real estate. For more information, please visit www.omers.com.
Contact:
Neil Hrab,
Manager, Communications – Investments
416-369-2418
nhrab@omers.com