The World Bank logo
  1. Who We Are

Asset Management

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Vision

We are the trusted partner for public asset managers.

We reinvest in clients, not the bottom line, through our cooperative model. We are the oldest and largest central bank partnership dedicated to improving reserve management.

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Mission

We improve asset management to support stability, resilience, and prosperity.

We manage assets of the World Bank’s trust funds and over 70 public asset management institutions worldwide, including central banks, pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, and UN agencies--serving clients’ individual needs while striving to deliver returns above benchmarks.

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Services

We manage assets for development partners, RAMP members & external clients.

As the largest asset manager in the development community, with over $80 billion of assets under management, we leverage our experience to improve public asset management worldwide.

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Impact

We work toward the Sustainable Development Goals.

Our work improving public asset management worldwide contributes to economic growth, climate action, strong institutions, and partnerships.

With over $80 billion of assets under management, we are the largest asset manager in the development community

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  • We put clients first. 
    As trusted partners for public asset management institutions worldwide, seasoned portfolio managers have decades of experience delivering returns above benchmarks while meeting clients’ needs and guidelines.

    We see opportunities where others see market inefficiencies. 
    We manage benchmarked portfolios to generate consistent and incremental excess returns and control the risk of large drawdowns. We also actively manage model portfolio asset allocations for trust funds to reduce risk and increase alpha across different market segments.

    We integrate ESG to improve financial outcomes.
    The World Bank trust funds sustainable fixed-income strategy seeks to build on historical investment objectives such as capital preservation and high liquidity by demonstrating that capital can contribute to sustainable development even before disbursement.

  • All trust funds and FIF assets administered by the World Bank are maintained in a commingled investment portfolio (the “Pool”). To accommodate varying investment horizons and risk tolerances of individual trust funds and FIFs, the Pool comprises of sub-portfolios, called model portfolios, in which trust funds and FIFs liquid assets can be invested.

    The Pool provides several benefits to its participants, such as:

    • A selection of model portfolios to accommodate various liquidity needs and risk preferences of different funds, managed within a comprehensive risk management framework.
    • Access to a wide variety of investment products and longer maturity investments to enhance returns and investment income over time.
    • A cost-effective investment platform resulting in low administrative costs to participants.
    • Regular review of liquidity needs across funds to optimize investments over the longer term.

     

    Asset Classes

    Asset Class Asset Description

    Asset Class Asset Description

    Domestic Government Securities

    Marketable bonds, notes or other obligations issued or unconditionally guaranteed by the government of a country in its own domestic currency and approved by the World Bank’s Credit Committee.

    Mortgage-backed Securities (MBS)

    US Agency-guaranteed residential mortgage-backed securities (MBS), including fixed-rate pass-throughs, adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs), interest-only (IO) and principal-only (PO) strips, and collateralized mortgage obligations (CMOs).

    AAA Corporate Securities

    (incl. Asset Backed Securities)

    AAA-rated asset-backed securities (ABS) including Collateralized Debt Obligations (CLOs), backed by student loans, auto and credit card receivables, public sector loans or prime first lien residential mortgages and domiciled in an eligible country, and any other AAA-rated obligations of a corporate entity.

    Agency/ Sovereign/ Government guaranteed Securities

     

    Marketable bonds, notes or other obligations rated at least AA- issued by a government agency, supranational institution or local authority domiciled in an eligible country as well as corporate debt guaranteed by the government of eligible countries.

    Covered Bonds

    Debt instruments secured by a cover pool of mortgage loans or public-sector debt to which investors have a preferential claim in the event of default. Typically, more secure and thus higher rated than Agency MBS and other ABS due to the preferential claim of investors.

    Money Market Instruments/ Financial Institutions Securities

    Time deposits, certificates of deposit, reverse repurchase agreements and other obligations issued or unconditionally guaranteed by a bank or other financial institution domiciled in an eligible country, whose senior debt securities are rated at least A- and maturing in 3 months or less.

    Developed Market Equities

    A stock or any other security representing an ownership interest.

    Swaps and Derivatives

    Financial futures and options contracts, other derivative and associated instruments, forward rate agreements, swap transactions, options to enter into swap transactions in the future, and foreign exchange contracts.

  • The World Bank Treasury has extensive experience in managing and investing development partner financial resources. The World Bank has mobilized and managed development partner contributions since 1960 when the International Development Association (IDA) was created to support the poorest countries through interest free and long maturity loans.

    Since the 1980s, development partners have also provided bilateral aid resources and other contributions through trust funds managed by the World Bank. Over the past two decades, they have engaged the World Bank as trustee for Financial Intermediary Funds (FIFs). In this trustee function for FIFs, the World Bank takes on different financial management and advisory roles, while project implementation and oversight in developing countries is carried out by the implementing entities of the respective FIFs. 

  • We provide asset management services for the Reserve Advisory & Management Partnership (RAMP), the oldest and largest partnership dedicated to immproving reserve management. Established in 2001, the Partnership serves over 70 members, including central banks, international financial institutions, pension funds and sovereign wealth funds. Together, RAMP members manage over $2 trillion of sovereign assets.

A global fixed-income portfolio management leader

We develop financial products across asset classes to meet a rapidly changing world and global challenges facing public asset managers. In line with our Socially Responsible Investment Statement, we deliver advisory services on portfolio management and sustainable investing to our clients.

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Asset Management

Socially Responsible Investing Statement (Coming Soon)

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Asset Management

Sustainable Fixed-Income Strategy