Singapore research firm EDHEC Infrastructure and Private Assets (EDHECinfra) has won a mandate from Japan’s Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF) to analyse the fair value of the pension giant’s unlisted infrastructure equity portfolio.

The infrastructure and private debt research firm made the announcement in a statement on June 27.

It says investors need to assess the fair value of their private assets on an ongoing basis so that they can make “meaningful” comparison with other asset classes.

“The approach developed by EDHECinfra solves the usual problem of not having enough comparables of recent transactions and allows robust and precise market valuations of illiquid companies,” the firm says.

According to Frederic Blanc-Brude, a director of the firm, proper implementation of IFRS 13, the International Accounting Standards Board’s framework for measuring fair value, is essential for investors to trust valuations of their private asset investments, especially in infrastructure companies “that are seemingly unique and held for the long term”.

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