October 2023
23Oct

UK. Billions in local government pensions invested in fossil fuels – analysis

Billions in local government pensions have been invested in the fossil fuels industry, according to new analysis. Environmental campaign groups Friends of the Earth and Platform London analysed data gathered through Freedom of Information requests. The groups said they were able to analyse data covering 75% of the assets under management for the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) – one of the largest schemes in the country – for the financial year 2021/2022. They found at least £12.2 billion invested in fossil...

October 23, 2023
News, ,
Read more...
19Oct

UK. DWP taskforce launches new pensions guide consultation

A taskforce set up by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has launched a consultation on a new guide. The guide includes 30 recommendations for how the UK pensions sector can better incorporate social factors into investment decisions. The Taskforce on Social Factors (TSF) consultation aims to help pension schemes address the risks and seize opportunities of the “social” element in environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investing. The TSF was established in February 2023 and includes representatives from pensions schemes, asset...

October 19, 2023
News, ,
Read more...
18Oct

Australia pension fund plans up to $1.3 bln in clean energy investment

Australia's third-largest pension fund expects to invest up to A$2 billion ($1.3 billion) in a venture specialising in smaller-scale solar and battery installations as the country overhauls its electricity network to produce clean energy. Aware Super, which manages A$160 billion, announced on Wednesday a A$300 million partnership with Birdwood Energy to finance distributed renewable energy projects, and expects its investment to grow to up to A$2 billion as more projects become ready for financing. The partnership's planned investments in smaller-scale projects,...

October 18, 2023
News, , ,
Read more...
11Oct

UK. TfL pension fund on track to reduce carbon emissions by 2030

The Transport for London (TfL) pension fund estimates that it will reduce its carbon emissions by 56% by 2030, according to its latest Net Zero Carbon Journey update. So far, the fund has reduced its absolute carbon emissions by 30% since 2016, despite the fund being 40% larger. The fund is also ahead of where it needs to be on its net-zero journey in its active public portfolio with a weighted average carbon intensity (WACI) reduction 18% ahead of target and...

October 11, 2023
News, ,
Read more...
10Oct

U.K. investment managers see assets dip 12% in 2022

Assets managed by the U.K. investment management industry fell to £8.8 trillion ($10.61 trillion) at the end of 2022, a 12% decrease from the previous year, according to the Investment Association's annual Investment Management Survey. The survey released Oct. 10 attributed the drop to a broad-based market correction reflecting monetary policy changes, inflation, the Ukraine war and other global uncertainties. "The markets experienced an unusual correlation in the direction of travel for both global equities and bonds," the survey report...

October 10, 2023
News, , ,
Read more...
05Oct

Education gaps and time constraints: The ESG burdens facing UK pension trustees

With ESG rapidly rising up the agenda for UK pension schemes, their often overstretched trustee boards have been grappling with how to ensure it gets enough time on agendas and how to educate themselves on fast-moving developments. Janice Turner, co-chair of the Association of Member Nominated Trustees (AMNT), told Responsible Investor that the proportion of trustee time taken up by ESG matters has been increasing every year, especially due to enhanced regulatory requirements. “I would assume that ESG is an agenda item at...

October 5, 2023
News,
Read more...
04Oct

Japanese pension funds with $600 billion to ink ESG pact

Japanese pension funds managing 90 trillion yen ($600 billion) will join a global initiative for responsible investment, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said in a speech on Oct. 3. Seven of the nation's public retirement funds will start preparations to sign the Principles for Responsible Investment, Kishida said. The PRI was started by the United Nations in 2006 to encourage investment that takes environmental, social and governance factors into consideration. As the number of members has increased globally, Japanese firms have been...

October 4, 2023
News, ,
Read more...
03Oct

Danish pension fund completes US$520m divestment

Danish pension fund AkademikerPension has completed a fossil fuel divestment program to exit its portfolio of oil and gas stocks worth US$520 million with the sale of Italy's ENI. The fund, which oversees $20 billion in client assets, has undergone a divestment program spanning half a decade. It has now divested from BP, Chevron, Equinor, Exxon Mobil, Petrobras, PetroChina, Shell, Repsol and TotalEnergies. AkademikerPension, formerly named MP Pension, is a pension fund that admits academic degree holders, with more than 150,000 members privately or...

October 3, 2023
News, ,
Read more...

September 2023
27Sep

Comparing ESG regulation globally remains elusive – report

Comparing global regulatory demands on ESG funds will continue to be elusive, according to a regulatory update from ISS ESG published Sept. 21. Experts at the Institutional Shareholder Services' sustainable investment arm reviewed current and proposed regulations in the European Union, U.K., U.S., Canada, Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore and Japan, and surmised "that navigating the emerging regimes will remain a challenge for the foreseeable future," the 2023 Global Regulatory Update said. It noted that two major sustainability reporting standards were finalized in 2023:...

September 27, 2023
News, , , , , ,
Read more...
25Sep

How The Backlash To ESG Can Create A Crisis For Companies

Companies should not be surprised when they face harsh criticism for doing what they think is the right thing, in the right way, and for the right reason. A case in point is efforts to implement environmental, social and government policies (ESG) in business and investing. What’s At Stake Given the divisive nature of society, people are more likely than not to have strong opinions—or outright and vocal opposition to the actions, decisions, and policies of companies and organizations. The backlash to ESG...

September 25, 2023
News
Read more...