Infrastructure assets under management (AUM) is growing in Canada. Infrastructure AUM in Canada was less than half of that for private equity in 2015, but a lot has changed. By Q3 2022, infrastructure AUM had surpassed $100bn for the first time and had overtaken private equity for the second time, with this initially occurring in 2019. The jump was helped by dry powder almost doubling to $39.8bn in 2022 from $20bn in 2021, while unrealized value grew by 47%, from $45.8bn in 2021 to $67.4bn.
Investors increasingly see Canadian infrastructure as an asset class to which it is worth committing more capital. This is largely due to the relatively stable economic conditions in the country, its robust regulatory framework, and an historically strong project pipeline for private investment.
Canada-based funds have played an outsized role too. Canada is home to large, well-known pension funds, such as CPP Investment Board, CDPQ, and the Public Sector Pension Investment Board (PSP Investments), which invest domestically and globally, particularly in infrastructure and energy transition assets.
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