Scrutiny keeps S Korea pension fund from higher returns

Seoul

LAST year, investment managers at South Korea's National Pension Service (NPS), which oversees US$430 billion in assets, were looking to buy a portfolio of blue chip stocks from emerging markets including South-east Asia.

The investment was to have been part of a push to diversify a heavily domestic portfolio, but ultimately the world's third-largest pension fund took a pass.

Fear of second-guessing and criticism by auditors and politicians if the investment turned sour outweighed the promise of upside, said an NPS investment manager familiar with what happened. "Because some investment managers might h…