The Qatar Investment Authority, which manages US$328 billion in assets, has hired the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board’s (CPPIB) former chief investment strategist, Don Raymond. (Financial Post)

Talking point: Qatar is seeking to emulate CPPIB’s active investing strategy, which Raymond played a key role in building. He was the first employee in the fund’s public market investments division, helping it grow from an $11-billion portfolio to $100 billion. Qatar wants to increase its environmental investments and boost its U.S. holdings from US$30 billion to US$45 billion. The push is part of a larger attempt by the Gulf nations to reduce their reliance on domestic oil reserves. It’s also the latest sign of international interest in the “Canadian model” of pension management, which relies on geographic and asset class diversification and which has helped make Canadian pensions some of the largest in the world.