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4 firms interested in Fund’s investment consultant job
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Posted on Nov 09 2011
By Moneth Deposa
Reporter
Reporter
Four off-island companies have expressed interest in becoming the NMI Retirement Fund’s next investment consultant.
Administrator Richard Villagomez said yesterday that these four firms responded to the Fund’s announcement and have already turned in their proposals. He declined to name the proposers.
The Fund’s last investment consultant, Wilshire Consulting, terminated its contract after only a year following the signing into law of the Beneficiaries’ Derivative Act, which allows retirees to sue the Fund’s money managers.
Without an investment consultant, the Fund board is stymied from making decisions on its investments. As a temporary measure, the board decided to liquidate all of the Fund’s investments and move them to CDARS, or certificate of deposit account registry service.
During yesterday’s meeting at the Saipan Rotary Club, Villagomez was told about a company that wants to service the Fund and may submit a proposal with the condition that it would only take effect if the Beneficiaries Derivative Act is repealed.
Villagomez said that the Fund cannot consider that proposal “responsive” because the agency has no control over the Legislature. “How fast [the repeal] happens, only time will tell.”
A bill proposing to repeal the Act is now pending at the Legislature.
As of Oct. 25, the Fund’s portfolio was valued at $264,497.211. Villagomez disclosed that some Fund monies are still in mutual funds, while some ($134.2 million) are in cash.
Villagomez said it is the intention of the Fund to move to the CDARS program as quickly as possible and are now finalizing the paperwork. However, all these processes may be stopped, he said, depending on the recommendation of any new consultant the Fund hires.
