The People’s Pension (TPP) has announced plans to invest a "significant" proportion of the £31bn of assets it manages in private markets later this year, with a target of growing this allocation to 10 per cent, or £4bn, by 2030.

The pension master trust said a substantial part of this new asset allocation could be deployed in the UK if available assets meet the return requirements at a fee level that leaves the benefits in the hands of members and with the right operational structures in place.

TPP already invests 14 per cent of its members’ savings in UK-based assets within its growth stage default fund.

The announcement comes alongside the imminent appointment of a private market specialist and the creation of research capability, and follows the scheme’s statement last year that it had reached the scale to deploy meaningfully into private markets.

Commenting on the plans, TPP board of trustees chair, Mark Condron, described it as a “significant step forward” on the path towards private market investment.

“We are demonstrating how a responsible asset owner, operating at the right scale, can invest in both the best interests of its members and to the benefit of the wider economy in which they work.”

People’s Partnership chief executive officer, Patrick Heath-Lay, said the move comes at a “pivotal time” for UK pensions, with the government indicating a direction of travel toward scale and value for savers.

“As an independent £31bn master trust, without shareholders, we believe that now is the time to increase our investment in private assets for the benefit of our savers and the growth of the UK economy. TPP has a vital role to play in this exciting plan for the future of UK retirement savings.”

In support of the announcement, Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, added: “Growing the economy is the number one mission of the government. This public commitment from one of the UK’s largest independent pension master trusts to invest here, at home in Britain, will help drive economic growth and support our milestone of improving living standards across the UK.”

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