Blade misrepresents OP&F. Read our response.

Letter to the editor,

The Toledo Blade again failed to do any real research before sending its recent editorial (Ohio’s out-of-the-box public pension, Sept. 19) to print. OP&F’s risk parity approach REDUCES risk to our fund by limiting exposure to stock market volatility. The leverage used is applied only to fixed income assets, traditionally much lower risk assets than equities, while far riskier equity exposures are reduced to help bring down the overall risk level of the portfolio while maintaining a competitive return expectation.

The proof is in the pudding. Through June 30, 2022: OP&F’s portfolio return ranks in the top 11 percent of its peers for the six month period; in the top five percent of its peers for the one year period; in the top eight percent of its peers for both the three and five years periods; and in the top five percent of its peers for the 10 year period.

Through June 30, 2022, peer group analysis also indicates OP&F’s portfolio ranks among the 25 percent lowest risk portfolios for the past five years, while its return ranks in the top eight percent of its peers. This combined reward-to-risk ranking places OP&F’s portfolio in the top four percent for one year, top 12 percent for three years and top 11 percent for five years.

We encourage your readers to listen to the actual Sept. 8 presentation from Funston which is on the Ohio Retirement Study Council website. Funston noted that OP&F has a highly qualified in-house investment staff and lauded our risk parity approach.

With regards,

Mary Beth Foley, Esq.

Executive Director

Posted 9/19/2022