January 2021

26Jan

ECB considers going greener in staff pension fund

The European Central Bank is considering moving to the use of low-carbon benchmark indexes for fixed-income allocations within its staff pension fund. The Frankfurt-based ECB last year replaced all conventional equity benchmark indexes tracked by the pension fund with low-carbon equivalents. The fund has €1.3 billion ($1.6 billion) in assets and €2.5 billion in obligations. A spokeswoman said the size of individual allocations are not being disclosed. The move "significantly reduced the carbon footprint of the equity funds. The...

January 26, 2021
News, Slider, ,
Read more...
25Jan

Singapore. SGX Accelerates Sustainability Drive With Launch Of ESG Derivatives

Suite of four new derivatives a key thrust of SGX FIRST initiative Launch further broadens multi-asset partnership with FTSE Russell Singapore Exchange (SGX) is accelerating its SGX FIRST sustainability agenda with the launch of its pioneering suite of ESG derivatives today. SGX developed the new contracts in partnership with FTSE Russell to offer investors more choice in promoting the integration of Environment, Social and Governance (ESG) factors into institutional investment portfolios on an award-winning market infrastructure. The SGX FIRST...

January 25, 2021
News, Slider, , ,
Read more...
23Jan

Biden team to review Labor Department ESG rule

The Biden administration will review a recent Department of Labor rule stipulating that ERISA plan fiduciaries cannot invest in "non-pecuniary" vehicles that sacrifice investment returns or take on additional risk. In his first few hours in office Wednesday, President Joe Biden signed a flurry of executive orders, including one titled "Protecting Public Health and the Environment and Restoring Science to Tackle the Climate Crisis." Also Read: US. Multiemployer pension plans could soon see relief In the order, Mr. Biden directed all executive...

January 23, 2021
News, ,
Read more...
15Jan

UK Asset Owners and Managers to Form Sustainability Alliance

How can pension plans and financial managers boost sustainable investing? By forming a group to do so. Read also U.K. government cuts administration fees for smallest DC pots British asset owners and managers are forging an alliance with that in mind. It’s in response to greater calls from regulators in the country to further the fight against climate change and promote other societal goals. Read also U.K. corporate funds finish 2020 with increased deficits The steering group that convened this week...

January 15, 2021
News, Slider, , ,
Read more...
13Jan

Swiss APK designs new climate strategy for investments

The managing board of Aargauische Pensionskasse (APK), the CHF11.6bn (€10.6bn) Swiss pension fund for the employees of the Aargau canton, has designed a climate strategy to hedge the fund against risks caused by climate change. The climate strategy for the entire equity portfolio kicks in this year. APK will aim to reduce climate risks “efficiently [and] cost-effectively” with a particular focus on equities. The strategy will also include three other additional pillars: commitment to increase dialogue with invested companies,...

January 13, 2021
News, Slider, ,
Read more...
08Jan

Canada. Ontario students push teachers to pressure pension fund to divest from fossil fuels

An environmental coalition is appealing to Ontario teachers to pressure their pension fund to divest from companies that develop or transport fossil fuel products. In a four minute YouTube video, a group of students from across Ontario read a letter to their teachers, asking them to push the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan to stop investing their retirement savings in oil, gas, coal, and pipeline companies. The coalition — which consists of activist groups Shift Action for Pension Wealth and Planet Health,...

January 8, 2021
News, Slider, ,
Read more...
08Jan

UK. ‘We didn’t want our pensions invested in anything that was causing harm’

Roy and Becky Francomb from East Sussex recently decided they wanted to move their bank accounts to somewhere more ethical. Photograph: Roy Francomb Lots of people have started 2021 with the aim of making green lifestyle changes such as going vegan or giving up flying. But arguably the most powerful environmental changes you can make as an individual involve your finances, whether it’s the cash in your current account or the money you are saving for retirement. Research issued this week by...

January 8, 2021
News, Slider, ,
Read more...
07Jan

ESG Investing and Retirement Plans

As ESG (environmental, social and governance) investing recently has drawn the attention of governmental agencies that oversee the administration of qualified retirement plans and their trillions of dollars in assets.  This is unsurprising given that focus and interest in ESG investing has picked steam at a rapid pace in recent years.  On October 30, 2020, the Department of Labor (DOL) finalized amendments to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act’s (ERISA) “investment duties” regulation (the Final Investment Duties Rule).  The...

January 7, 2021
News, Slider,
Read more...
04Jan

Why the U.S. needs a national climate investment fund

In recent weeks, we have witnessed the power of innovation to solve catastrophic problems. Most notably, we have seen the extraordinary human accomplishment of delivering vaccines within a year to counter the novel coronavirus, COVID-19—an achievement that was accelerated by the U.S. government’s Project Warp Speed.  What many people may be less aware of is that across America and other global innovation centers, companies are striving to harness that same power to tackle climate change. Businesses of all sizes are toiling away...

January 4, 2021
News, Slider, ,
Read more...

December 2020

23Dec

How an ERISA Fiduciary May Try to Save the World

By Albert Feuer On November 13, 2020, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) promulgated a final regulation regarding the investment duties of an ERISA fiduciary in selecting either direct plan investments or investment alternatives to make available to participants and beneficiaries of self-directed plans (the “Investment Duties Regulation”). The Regulation, like the proposed form of the Regulation, which provoked more than 8,000 public comments which were overwhelming critical, was intended to discourage what the DOL called ESG or sustainable...

December 23, 2020
Articles, Investment, Pension design, ,
Read more...