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Largest Public Pension Funds Ranked by Assets in 2024

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Ricardo Fernandes
Fintech Analyst
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Franklin Silva
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Fact checked by: Franklin SilvaUpdated on Jul 26, 2024

Public pension funds are a crucial pillar of society. Managed on behalf of government employees, retirees, and beneficiaries, these funds ensure that government employees have a source of income in retirement.

Public Pension Funds are established by governmental entities and have the primary goal of generating returns that will fund pension payments and keep the fund financially sound. These funds can also assist governments in attracting and retaining qualified employees, contributing to the overall effectiveness and efficiency of public services.

Therefore, the total assets of these funds represent a crucial metric in assessing their health. The scale, coupled with effective management by the entity, plays a pivotal role in generating income to finance the pension payments and guarantee its sustainability.

Here’s the list of the public pension funds in the world by Total Assets (AUM) for 2024:

Public Pension Fund Total Assets1 (AUM) Date Reported Region
Social Security Trust Fund Investment $2.86 trillion September, 2023 United States
Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF) $1.50 trillion* September, 2023 Japan
Military Retirement Fund $1.28 trillion September, 2022 United States
Federal Employees Retirement System $1.14 billion November, 2022 United States
Caisse des Dépôts $1.12 trillion** December, 2022 France
National Pension Service of Korea $743 billion*** June, 2023 South Korea
Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board $737 billion December, 2022 United States
Central Provident Fund $548 billion May, 2023 Singapore
Canada Pension Plan (CPP)  $546 billion March, 2023 Canada
Stichting Pensioenfonds ABP $477 billion**** October, 2023 Netherlands
California Public Employees Retirement System $467 billion November, 2023 United States
Zenkyoren $433 billion***** March, 2023 Japan
Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec $320 billion****** June, 2023 Canada
California State Teachers Retirement System $317 billion November, 2023 United States

*The exchange rate applied is as of the close on 29/09/2022 (Source: Yahoo Finance).
**The exchange rate applied is as of the close on 30/12/2022 (Source: Yahoo Finance).
***The exchange rate applied is as of the close on 30/06/2023 (Source: Yahoo Finance).
****The exchange rate applied is as of the close on 31/10/2023 (Source: Yahoo Finance).
*****The exchange rate applied is as of the close on 30/03/2023 (Source: Yahoo Finance).
******The exchange rate applied is as of the close on 29/06/2023 (Source: Yahoo Finance).

With $2.86 trillion in total assets, the Social Security Trust Fund Investment from the U.S. is the largest public pension fund, followed by the Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF) from Japan, with total assets amounting to $1.49 trillion.

It’s worth noting that we have three funds with assets above $1 trillion, highlighting the significance of these funds in the U.S. These three funds cover traditional social security, military retirement, and federal employee retirement.

Social Security Trust Fund Investment

  • Total assets (AUM): $2.86 trillion
  • Date Reported (AUM): September 2023
  • Region: United States

The Social Security Trust Fund Investment is overseen by the Social Security Trust Administration (SSA) and was created with the mission of ensuring equity and accessibility in delivering Social Security (SS) services. In the fiscal year of 2023, the fund distributed more than $1.4 trillion to the beneficiaries of this system. This money primarily came through tax revenues, which amounted to $1.2 trillion.

Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF)

  • Total assets (AUM): $1.49 trillion
  • Date Reported (AUM): September 2023
  • Region: Japan

Government Pension Investment Fund manage (GIPF) over $1.49 trillion as of September 2023. GIPF is an incorporated administrative agency (an independent administrative institution) established by the Japanese government with the primary goal of achieving the investment returns required for the public pension system with minimal risks in a long-term perspective.

Military Retirement Fund

  • Total assets (AUM): $1.28 trillion
  • Date Reported (AUM): September 2022
  • Region: United States

The Military Retirement Fund is managed by the Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS), which is part of the U.S. Department of Defense. The fund provides benefits for military members’ retirement from active duty and the reserves, disability retirement benefits, and survivor benefits. As of September 2022, the fund had total assets amounting to $1.28 trillion.

Federal Employees Retirement System

  • Total assets (AUM): $1.14 trillion
  • Date Reported (AUM): November 2022
  • Region: United States

The Federal Employees’ Retirement System (FERS) is the retirement system for employees within the United States civil service. Although FERS is a retirement system that targets the needs of the Federal workforce, many of its features are portable if the beneficiaries leave Federal employment. As of November 2022, FERS managed $1.14 trillion in total assets.

Caisse des Dépôts

  • Total assets (AUM): $1.12 trillion
  • Date Reported (AUM): December 2022
  • Region: France

The Caisse des Dépôts is a French public sector financial institution created as part of the government institutions. It serves as the investment arm of the French State, aiming to serve the public interest as a long-term investor. As of December 2022, the fund under the administration of the Caisse des Dépôts has total assets amounting to $1.12 trillion.

National Pension Service of Korea

  • Total assets (AUM): $738 billion
  • Date Reported (AUM): September 2023
  • Region: South Korea

The National Pension Service of Korea is South Korea’s public pension fund. Established in 1987, its primary objective is to secure the retirement benefits of Korean citizens, ensuring income security and promoting national welfare in cases of retirement, disability, or death. As of September 2023, the fund’s total assets amounted to $738 billion.

Central Provident Fund

  • Total assets (AUM): $548 billion
  • Date Reported (AUM): May 2023
  • Region: Singapore

The Central Provident Fund (CPF) is a mandatory social security savings scheme from Singapore funded by contributions from employers and employees. The CPF serves as a key pillar of Singapore’s social security system and is designed to meet retirement, housing, and healthcare needs. As of May 2023, the funds managed an amount of assets equal to $548 billion.

Canada Pension Plan (CPP)

  • Total assets (AUM): $546 billion
  • Date Reported (AUM): March 2023
  • Region: Canada

The Canada Pension Plan (CPP) is a social insurance plan funded by the contributions of employees, employers, and self-employed individuals, along with the revenue earned on CPP investments. As of March 2023, the fund had total assets invested amounting to $546 billion, benefiting more than 21 million individuals across the country.

Stichting Pensioenfonds ABP

  • Total assets (AUM): $477 billion
  • Date Reported (AUM): October 2023
  • Region: Netherlands

Stichting Pensioenfonds ABP (“National Civil Pension Fund”), commonly known as ABP, is the pension fund for government and education employees in the Netherlands. As of October 2023, the fund managed over $477 billion in assets with over 3 million participants in the pension scheme.

California Public Employees Retirement System

  • Total assets (AUM): $467 billion
  • Date Reported (AUM): November 2023
  • Region: United States

The California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) is an agency in California that manages pensions and health benefits for more than 1.5 million public employees in the state. This is an example of a local public pension plan, but even though it is local, it holds a significant amount of assets, equivalent to $467 billion.

Zenkyoren

  • Total assets (AUM): $433 billion
  • Date Reported (AUM): March 2023
  • Region: Japan

Zenkyoren (National Mutual Insurance Federation of Agricultural Cooperatives) provides a pension fund for the farming community in Japan. As of March 2023, the fund had total assets amounting to $433 billion.

Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec

  • Total assets (AUM): $320 billion
  • Date Reported (AUM): June 2023
  • Region: Canada

A Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) is an institutional investor that manages the Pension Plan of Québec, created by the Canadian Government. Its purpose is to provide individuals who have worked in Québec and their families with basic financial protection in the event of retirement, death, or disability. As of June 2023, the fund administered $320 billion in assets.

California State Teachers Retirement System

  • Total assets (AUM): $317 billion
  • Date Reported (AUM): November 2023
  • Region: United States

The California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS) provides retirement, disability, and survivor benefits for California’s community college educators and their families. As of November 2023, CalSTRS managed a portfolio worth $317 billion.

Bottom Line

The Total Assets (AUM) are a crucial indicator for public pension funds as they directly influence revenue generation for their intended purposes. These funds typically aim to provide retirement, disability, and survivor benefits to a specific community or the general public. Therefore, the larger the fund, the greater its nominal revenue, and the more easily payouts can be made.

In this article, we ranked the world’s largest public pension funds based on their total assets. Notably, most of the featured funds are from the U.S. As we can see, they have a lot of regional and specific target public pension funds, highlighting their importance.

Whether you qualify for one of these funds and have uncertainties, or if you simply have questions about this type of fund, we hope to have helped you with the information provided.


1All total assets (AUM) are denominated in US dollars (USD).

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Ricardo Fernandes
Fintech Analyst

Ricardo Fernandes is broker analyst. He has a passion for finance and business and is the CEO of Minho Investment Association, a junior initiative from Portugal.

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