Our mission

The Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund’s (AP4’s) mission is to contribute to the financial security of current and future pensioners in Sweden by managing part of the national pension system’s buffer capital.

We are a government agency that is governed by the Swedish National Pension Funds Act (the AP Funds Act), which stipulates that we are to invest the fund capital for a long-term high return and thereby provide the greatest possible benefit for the income pension system. We are also to manage the capital in an exemplary way through responsible investments and responsible ownership.

Sweden’s pension system must work over several generations. This makes our mission essential for society and requires that we work with a long-term perspective. The ability to work long-term is grounded in the pension system’s design, which among other things enables us to stay resilient in the face of short-term volatility in the world’s stock markets, irrespective of fluctuations in the market, if it favours long-term returns. This long-term perspective, together with our ambition to be a responsible asset manager with a strong commitment to sustainability, enables us to generate high returns at a low cost. In this way AP4 works for more secure pensions.

Our three guiding principles for how we perform our mission:

We work with a long-term perspective

Since it is possible to foresee with relative certainty how large disbursements need to be made from the AP Funds to the pension system over time we can, in contrast to many other actors, invest from a very long-term perspective. This means that we can think differently, go against the stream and act long-term – such as in short-term market turbulence.

We are sustainable

For AP4, sustainability is a prerequisite for our success in managing Sweden’s pension capital over the long term. It is for this reason that sustainability issues are always integrated in our investment processes. This allows us to take well balanced risks and capitalise on business opportunities that arise along the way – at the same time that we keep our sight focused on the goal of achieving a high return.

We take responsibility

As a major investor we have not only opportunities, but also a great responsibility. The companies we have ownership in are an integral part of society and affect the general business climate and environment in various ways. Active corporate governance is a focus area through which we contribute to increasing and stewarding shareholder value. Accordingly, we work in the best interests of each individual company and its shareholders. We do this through our work on nomination committees, by voicing our position on important issues, voting at general meetings of shareholders, and by serving on boards, investment committees and corresponding investment bodies both in Sweden and abroad.