Marvin OnumonuA new alliance has been set up by the Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment (CISI) and the City of London Corporation to boost UK economic growth by using pension capital.
The CISI Growth Unleashed Learning Alliance aims to support education and understanding of the Mansion House Accord.
The Accord is designed to unlock £252bn for UK businesses and infrastructure by increasing investments in private markets.
The agreement was signed on 11th July 2025 by Tracy Vegro OBE (pictured, left), CEO at CISI, Alastair King FCSI(Hon) (pictured, centre), Lord Mayor of the City of London, and Nick Garnish (pictured, right) Chartered MCSI, master, Worshipful Company of International Bankers.
Vegro said: “We are excited to be leading this new initiative along with our partners in the Chartered Body Alliance, which is aligned to the Lord Mayor’s Growth Unleashed mission, and is a sector response to UK financial services market uncertainty and questions around risk.
“We look forward to working with and supporting CISI Honorary Fellow and Lord Mayor of the City of London, Alastair King as convener of this innovative alliance of educational and professional partners.
“We will work towards accelerating the adoption of the Mansion House Accord, developing a targeted learning and engagement programme across the pensions and investment ecosystem.“
Garnish said: “Growth is critically important, so I am delighted to join the group which was convened by the Lord Mayor.
“The aim is to improve education and engagement associated with risk and risk management, within this ecosystem, to help unlock growth opportunities and illustrate the power of education to change lives and generate better outcomes.”
King said: “This CISI Growth Unleashed Learning Alliance has been magnificently supported by the CISI and backed by the Chartered Body Alliance, other leading professional bodies, and universities.
“The Plan will give pension trustees, managers, and policymakers throughout the pension value chain the tools and the confidence they need to invest more productively.
“Wonderfully, these professional bodies have committed to offer this training at cost, to benefit the British economy. That is a real commitment from them for which I am most grateful.”
King added: “Our Accord, Pensions Pledge, and education plan represent bold commitments from the financial industry to serve others before it serves itself…but we can go further to help British households secure their long-term financial security.”
The CISI Growth Unleashed Learning Alliance will design and deliver a UK-wide programme to raise awareness of the benefits of investing in private markets, improve trustee and professional skills in pensions governance, and support policy alignment with investment practice.
The programme will include CPD-accredited modular training, executive roundtables, a national insight and innovation series, and practical toolkits.
Delivery will start in Autumn 2025 and the CISI will lead, backed by the Chartered Body Alliance, professional institutes, universities, and industry contributors including the Worshipful Company of International Bankers.
