The Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan grew its net assets to $123 billion, as of Dec. 31, up from $112.6 billion a year earlier. HOOPP, which manages retirement savings on behalf of  478,000 members, was 111 per cent funded by year-end. That is, it had $1.11 in assets for every dollar it owed pensions. (The Logic)

Talking point: HOOPP chief investment officer Michael Wissell credited the fund’s liquidity for helping deliver strong returns in a year characterized by geopolitical and economic instability. The fund is heavily invested in Canadian bonds, which are considered highly liquid and give HOOPP the flexibility to snap up assets when good opportunities arise. Public equities generated 17.9 per cent, the biggest return for the fund last year, followed by private equity’s 12.7 per cent return. HOOPP CEO Jeff Wendling, who’s retiring at the end of March, said the fund is bracing for the economic impacts of the U.S.-Canada trade war. The silver lining, he said, is that market slumps on both sides of the border will create deals for good assets.