Topic

Explainers

Coverage, charts, video and research on Explainers for universal owners.

Latest in Explainers
Private Markets

How Big Is the Private Credit Market?

Why estimates of the private credit market vary so widely, what is actually being measured, and why asset owners keep allocating to it.

UAO Editorial · Jun 16, 2026
Pension Funds

Pension Risk Transfer and Buyouts, Explained

What pension risk transfer means, how buyouts and buy-ins differ, why higher rates triggered record de-risking, and how it reshapes institutional capital.

UAO Editorial · Jun 16, 2026
Pension Funds

CPP Investments, Explained

How CPP Investments grew into one of the world's largest and most globally diversified pension funds — its mandate, strategy, returns and benchmark debate.

UAO Editorial · Jun 16, 2026
Institutional Investing

What Is a Universal Asset Owner?

The definition, origins and practical meaning of universal ownership — and why the largest sovereign and pension funds increasingly think like owners of the entire market.

UAO Editorial · Jun 16, 2026
Sovereign Wealth Funds

The Santiago Principles, Explained

A clear guide to the Santiago Principles — the 24 governance, investment and risk standards for sovereign wealth funds, how self-assessment works, and the debate over reform.

UAO Editorial · Jun 15, 2026
Portfolio Strategy

Policy Portfolio vs Total Portfolio Approach

The difference between a fixed policy portfolio and the total portfolio approach, why funds like GIC and CPP adopted TPA, and the trade-offs each model carries.

UAO Editorial · Jun 15, 2026
Private Markets

Continuation Vehicles in Private Equity, Explained

How continuation vehicles work, why they have become a mainstream private-equity exit route, and what asset owners should weigh before rolling or cashing out.

UAO Editorial · Jun 15, 2026
Sovereign Wealth Funds

ADQ: Abu Dhabi's Third Sovereign Investor, Explained

The youngest and most domestically focused of Abu Dhabi's three sovereign investors — how ADQ was built, what it owns, and how the 2026 LIMAD restructuring changes it.

UAO Editorial · Jun 14, 2026
Institutional Investing

Factor Investing, Explained

The rules-based middle ground between passive indexing and active stock-picking, and why the world's largest allocators think in factors rather than asset classes.

UAO Editorial · Jun 14, 2026
The Daily Brief

The morning briefing for the people who allocate long-horizon capital.

Research, charts, video and podcast analysis for the institutions investing at the scale of the world.