September 2024

Sustainable Investing Pursuing Differentiated Paths

“Sustainable investing” has entered the financial lexicon. More investors have adopted it as the preferred term to describe their approach to incorporating the material impacts of environmental, social and governance factors on their investments. But with the proliferation of diverse sustainable approaches available today, it can mean different things to different participants in the institutional investment world. Thomas Kuh, head of ESG strategy at Morningstar Indexes, broadly defines sustainable investing “as an overarching category that includes climate, ESG and impact....

US. House passes anti-ESG package of bills

House Republicans passed two pieces of anti-ESG legislation in just as many days, culminating in what the party has dubbed “woke week.” The topic is essentially a continuation of the GOP’s long-running anti-ESG campaign, which last year featured a handful of hearings and numerous bills during “ESG month.” This week’s bills, which seek to undo rules from the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Department of Labor and others, stand virtually no chance of passage in the Senate or of getting President Joe...

Canada. PSP Investments’ green assets increased to $64.9BN in fiscal 2024: report

The Public Sector Pension Investment Board has $64.9 billion invested in green assets, compared to $48.9 billion in fiscal 2023, according to the investment organization’s latest sustainability report. It found in addition to green assets, PSP Investments has roughly $11.5 billion in transition assets, defined as investments that have committed to make a substantial contribution to the low-carbon transition through the establishment of public targets and disclosure. Among PSP Investments’ portfolio companies, reported Scope 1 and Scope 2 greenhouse gas emissions data...

Dutch pension funds to report CO2 reduction progress

Pension funds should report annually about the progress they make in meeting their CO2 reduction targets. They must also provide more insight into their sustainable investments, Dutch pension regulator DNB announced on its website. Pension funds must report annually on the progress made in achieving their CO2 reduction targets DNB imposes the additional requirements to “enable itself to adequately supervise sustainability risks at pension funds.” This is because, in its own words, the regulator currently “does not have sufficient information to adequately supervise the...

Nordea Wins $450 Million Sustainability-Focused Equity Investment Mandate from CalSTRS

Northern Europe-based asset manager Nordea Asset Management announced that it been awarded a $450 million sustainability-focused global equity investment mandate by the California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS), one of the largest public pension funds in the U.S. Under the new mandate, Nordea’s Global Stars Equity Strategy to manage a portion of ClasSTRS’ Sustainability-Focused Equity portfolio. Nordea’s STARS range features ESG integration into all fundamental investment decisions, with close coordination between portfolio managers and the firm’s Responsible Investment Team. The STARS...

Avances ASG en los fondos de pensiones, su potencial como inversores

Los fondos de pensiones tienen la oportunidad de participar activamente de la movilización de capital en inversiones con factores ASG, más solidas considerando escenarios de largo plazo, que crean valor para sus clientes y la sociedad, a la vez que movilizan las buenas prácticas y transparencias entre las empresas objeto de inversión. Los avances son resultado de la proactividad y visión de los fondos, pero también de la evolución normativa, tanto en requerimientos para las inversiones como para la transparencia...

Danish pension fund leaves Net-Zero Asset Owner Alliance

Danish pension fund PKA has withdrawn as a member of the Net-Zero Asset Owner Alliance (NZAOA), the fourth exit from the initiative and the first in more than a year, Responsible Investor can reveal. The €59.1 billion fund, which manages four pension plans within the social and healthcare sectors, joined the NZAOA in March 2021 and withdrew its support from the UN-backed group, which is part of the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ), on 31 August. A spokesperson for...

August 2024

US. Texas is sued over anti-ESG law

 Texas was sued on Thursday by a nonprofit whose members support environmentally-friendly policies, and which seeks to block a state law targeting businesses that support reduced reliance on fossil fuels. The American Sustainable Business Council said the 2021 law known as Senate Bill 13 violates members' free speech rights by banning Texas from investing in or contracting with businesses that, in the state's view, "boycott" the oil and gas industry. Texas is the largest and among the most prominent Republican-led states...

Finland pension funds consider divesting from logging firm after environmental violations

Finnish pension funds including Varma and Elo, both based in Helsinki, are considering divesting from forestry firm Stora Enso with the company being accused of sexism and environmental crimes in the country’s northern region of Suomussalmi, according to an emailed comment to Pensions & Investments. On Aug. 15, logging machinery belonging to Stora Enso was repeatedly driven over a shallow river within a forest in Suomussalmi, and in doing so killed thousands of endangered freshwater pearl mussels, as reported by Finnish public broadcasting...

Canadian pension funds recognized for governance, sustainability practices: report

Four of Canada’s largest pension funds have been ranked among the top 10 global pension funds for demonstrating best practices in governance, sustainability and resilience, according to a new report by data platform Global SWF. The assessment tool, which reviews the practices and efforts of state-owned sovereign wealth funds and public pension funds, gave the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec and the British Columbia Investment Corp. perfect scores across the board alongside the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund, Singapore-based...