Financial services provider CPF has posted a 5.3 percent rise in net assets for the year ended December 2023 to Sh73.1 billion, up from Sh69.4 billion, largely from increased investments.
The County Pension Fund (CPF), the first of three funds under CPF’s watch, had the largest contribution to it's growth as its net assets rose to Sh39 billion from Sh32.8 billion on higher allocations of funds to investments.
“This growth can be attributed to our diversified investment strategy, which included significant allocations in government securities, fixed deposits, and real estate investments,” CPF notes in its latest annual report.
Membership to the Country Pension Fund--which is drawn from county staff-- also rose in the year to 76,593 from 68,280 in 2022.
The growth in the CPF portfolio has served to mask a slowdown in assets under the manager’s other funds including its individual pension plan fund and the local government office pension trust (Laptrust).
The fund covering individual pension plans saw its net assets fall to Sh2.88 billion in 2023 from Sh3.14 billion previously from a contraction of its investment portfolio including cash and bank balances, short-term deposits, government securities, and listed stocks.
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The fund has, however, grown its membership to 23,229 persons from 10,931 previously in the same period.
CPF’s Laptrust Fund has meanwhile seen both its net assets and membership shrink as a continued effect of closure of defined benefit scheme to new members since 2011.
The county pension fund was established after closure of Laptrust to cater for new members even as the previous entity continued to operate as a closed fund.
Laptrust closed in 2023 with net assets of Sh31.2 billion in contrast to Sh33.4 billion previously while its membership dropped to 14,771 from 15,842.
The reduction in assets for the fund has been attributed to an increase in normal withdrawals as the scheme matures and a majority of members join the pensioners’ payroll.
CPF Financial Services offers a comprehensive range of services in retirement benefits schemes administration, trust fund services, archival services, wealth management, payments platform, transaction advisory, training, and management consulting.
CPF Group managing director Hosea Kili notes the financial services provider stands ready to capitalise on investment opportunities to enhance value to members.
The group currently serves 114,593 clients down from 95,053 customers last year.
“As we navigate through a complex global economic environment, the group is well prepared with comprehensive strategic measures to mitigate risks and capitalise on opportunities. Our focus remains on delivering value to our members through innovative solutions and prudent financial management,” Mr Kili said.
CPF, in 2023, bundled its investment properties to create the Laptrust Imara real estate investment trust (i-Reit) as part of its product diversification plan. A real estate investment trust (Reit) is a company that owns, operates, or finances income-generating real estate while an I-Reit is a type of Reit in which the investors pool their capital for purposes of acquiring long term income generating real estate including housing, commercial and other real estate.
