Climbing a ladder to successful outcomes
Despite their use in other areas of investment management, including their value as both components and stand-alone investments, we feel bond ladders are generally underutilized in the DC market. In a retirement income context, this underutilization is particularly disadvantageous. Pure ladders are the natural low-risk retirement income solutions, which alone should qualify them for consideration both as components in larger retirement income solutions and as credible stand-alone alternatives. For example, our flagship Retirement Income Strategy considers pure bond ladders in three ways:
- The Strategy converts to a pure bond ladder in its last five years, where the greater degree of income certainty outweighs to miss opportunity of market growth.
- The Strategy also recognizes that a pure bond ladder is the natural low risk alterative to our solution.
- The Strategy uses a pure bond ladder as the basis for building the de-risking component of our solution.
Within the fixed income component of our solution, we rely on an evergreen bond ladder, seeking the stability of its cashflow characteristics
Download the full whitepaper
Learn more about the investment markets, timely topics and our firm capabilities in this whitepaper.
Additional insights
Collectively forecasted, never arrived
Investment Outlook | Q1 2024
Like driving on ice, the trick to surviving 2024 may be not over committing in one direction. Staying flexible at the beginning of the year should allow for more insightful decisions down the road.
Rethinking overlay manager diversification
LDI
At LGIM America, we believe overlay manager diversification is likely inefficient and creates uncompensated risks. Using multiple overlay managers can result in increased costs, collateral inefficiency and higher governance burdens.
This material is intended to provide only general educational information and market commentary. Views and opinions expressed herein are as of the date set forth above and may change based on market and other conditions. The material contained here is confidential and intended for the person to whom it has been delivered and may not be reproduced or distributed. The material is for informational purposes only and is not intended as a solicitation to buy or sell any securities or other financial instrument or to provide any investment advice or service. L&G – Asset Management, America does not guarantee the timeliness, sequence, accuracy or completeness of information included. Past performance should not be taken as an indication or guarantee of future performance and no representation, express or implied, is made regarding future performance.
Unless otherwise stated, references herein to "L&G" and “L&G – Asset Management” refer to the global asset management business of Legal & General Group plc. that includes Legal & General Investment Management Ltd. (a U.K. FCA authorized adviser), Legal & General Investment Management America, Inc. (a U.S. SEC registered investment adviser) Legal & General Investment Management Asia Limited (a Hong Kong SFC registered adviser), Legal & General Investment Management Japan KK (licensed by the FAS in Japan), and LGIM Singapore Pte. Ltd. (licensed by the MAS in Singapore).
© 2026. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be re-produced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying and recording, without the written permission of the publishers.