The Public Investment Corporation SOC Limited (PIC) is an asset management firm wholly owned by the government of the Republic of South Africa, represented by the Minister of Finance.
Established in 1911 as the Public Debt Commissioners, the PIC was corporatised on 1 April 2005 in accordance with the
Public Investment Corporation Act, 2004. The PIC ranks amongst the best and successful asset management firms in the world and is by far the largest in Africa.
PIC’s clients are mostly public sector entities, which focus on provision of social security. Amongst these are the Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF), Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF), Compensation Commissioner Fund (CC), Compensation Commissioner Pension Fund (CP) and Associated Institutions Pension Fund (AIPF).
The PIC runs a diversified investment portfolio, which comprise of multiple asset classes. These include listed equities, real estate, capital market, private equity and impact investing. Through listed investments, the PIC controls over 10% of the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) and has direct and indirect exposure to almost all sectors of the South African economy. The Corporation has a mandate to invest in the rest of the African continent and beyond. Over and above generating financial returns for clients, through its impact-investing programme, the PIC seeks to generate social returns by investing in projects that ensure inclusive growth. The PIC supports the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals and considers environmental, social and governance issues in all its investments.