Anglican Church board failed on risk plan
From FaithfulNews.com of Australia
Phil Shirriff, chairman of the Glebe Administration Board, issued an apology to the diocese’s annual synod for investment decisions that saw $160 million wiped from the value of the Sydney diocese endowment fund.
In a statement to the synod, Mr Shirriff said that despite reducing bank debt from $140m to $83m last year, the diocese had stayed geared too long in growth assets, which fell in value as the global economy worsened.Adding to the pain, the board’s failure to have a full risk-management system in place resulted in a decision to rapidly sell down assets, meaning that the church sold many of its shares at the bottom of the market.
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The synod accepted that the board’s borrowing to invest had been exercised completely within the authority given to it, and also acknowledged that the board had clearly reported its investment decisions monthly to the diocese’s standing committee and annually to synod.
The Sydney diocese is left with a significantly depleted investment portfolio of $44m.