Fidelity picked for R.I.investment pool

By PBN Staff

PROVIDENCE – Fidelity Investments was selected Wednesday as the vendor of the Ocean State Investment Pool, an initiative passed in the General Assembly in June to help state and municipalities improve their liquid asset investments.

Fidelity was chosen by the State Investment Commission in a 7 to 0 vote with one abstention.

“In these challenging times, the Ocean State Investment Pool will help local government leaders across the state invest their cash and other liquid assets,” said General Treasurer Gina M. Raimondo, who chairs the State Investment Commission.

“This program will allow Treasury to extend its expertise to municipalities and improve investment returns by creating economies of scale,” she said.

The OSIP is slated to launch in the first quarter of 2012.

The Treasury estimates that there are more than $500 million in funds that could be appropriately invested in the voluntary OSIP. It also estimated that 44 of 50 states operate in some form of a local government investment pool.