Events & News

As the globe comes to grips with the COVID-19 pandemic, the world of responsible investment and sustainable finance has been readying itself for crises such as this over some time.

Recent extreme weather events in Australia have led the nation to pay closer attention to where its money is being invested, with 86% of Australians expecting their savings and super to be invested responsibly and ethically, according to new research commissioned by the Responsible Investment Association Australasia (RIAA). The study, finds that in the wake of the devastating bushfires, 3 in 4 Australians would consider moving their banking and superannuation to an alternative provider that invests responsibly and ethically, and that environmental issues (80%) are of greatest concern when investing their money. “This consumer sentiment mirrors the continuing growth of the sector with nearly half ($980 billion) of Australia’s assets under management now being invested through responsible investing” said RIAA CEO Simon O’Connor.

In a world first, welcomed by RIAA, the NZ Government will require default pension funds to exclude investments in fossil fuel producers. The Responsible Investment Association Australasia (RIAA) welcomes the announcement by the NZ government that will see the New Zealand pension system take strong steps to ensure New Zealanders auto-enrolled in a default KiwiSaver funds will not be invested in companies producing fossil fuels in addition to other strong mandated requirements for responsible investment commitments, starting June 2021. This announcement comes at a time when there is increased recognition that the financial services sector must play a strong role in supporting the transition to a low carbon world, with ever greater numbers of investors setting in place 2050 emissions reductions targets, in line with global goals under the Paris Agreement. This is a world first whereby default pensions will be mandated under law to exclude fossil fuels from portfolios, aligning with New Zealand’s strong commitments to take action under the Paris Agreement. Simon O’Connor, CEO of RIAA said: “RIAA welcomes this strong announcement by the NZ Ministers for Finance and Commerce and Consumer Affairs that will embed responsible investment into default KiwiSaver funds, consistent with RIAA’s own calls made in our submission to this review process.” In a world first, welcomed by RIAA, the NZ Government will require default pension funds to exclude investments in fossil fuel producers. The Responsible Investment Association Australasia (RIAA) welcomes the announcement by the NZ government that will see the New Zealand pension system take strong steps to ensure New Zealanders auto-enrolled in a default KiwiSaver funds will not be invested in companies producing fossil fuels in addition to other strong mandated requirements for responsible investment commitments, starting June 2021. This announcement comes at a time when there is increased recognition that the financial services sector must play a strong role in supporting the transition to a low carbon world, with ever greater numbers of investors setting in place 2050 emissions reductions targets, in line with global goals under the Paris Agreement. This is a world first whereby default pensions will be mandated under law to exclude fossil fuels from portfolios, aligning with New Zealand’s strong commitments to take action under the Paris Agreement. Simon O’Connor, CEO of RIAA said: “RIAA welcomes this strong announcement by the NZ Ministers for Finance and Commerce and Consumer Affairs that will embed responsible investment into default KiwiSaver funds, consistent with RIAA’s own calls made in our submission to this review process.” “This announcement recognises that investors who have strong commitments to a responsible investment including tackling climate change risks in their portfolios deliver better client outcomes.“

Australian super funds that comprehensively engage in responsible investment are outperforming their peers over one, three and five-year time frames, a new report from the Responsible Investment Association Australasia (RIAA) has found. The report also shows that in the face of rising public concern and increasing financial materiality of climate change, the consideration of climate risk by super fund boards continues to grow, but there remains room for improvement. This third edition of the Responsible Investment Super Study 2019 presents the results of an annual survey of Australia’s 57 largest superannuation fundsi – accounting for $1.75 trillion in assets under management. “This year’s report shows that Australia’s largest superannuation funds – including industry, retail, corporate and public sector funds – are ramping up their engagement in responsible investing to drive superior financial performance, reduce risk, and deliver better outcomes for their members and beneficiaries,” said Simon O’Connor, CEO of RIAA. 81% of Australia’s largest super funds are committed to responsible investment (up from 70% in 2016), and 72% report annually on responsible investment activity (up from 44% in 2016), highlighting how responsible investing is increasingly being embedded within Australian investment markets.

There’s been much debate recently around the appropriateness of investors targeting Australian businesses to protect our environment, to lift standards of human rights, and superannuation funds exercising their ownership on issues such as climate change.

More than 8 in 10 New Zealanders (83%) expect their KiwiSaver or other investments to be invested responsibly and ethically, new research commissioned by the Responsible Investment Association Australasia (RIAA) and Mindful Money has revealed. This compares with 7 in 10 New Zealanders (72%) in 2018. In an important signal to New Zealand’s KiwiSaver, banking and wealth management sectors, 2 in 3 New Zealanders would consider switching their KiwiSaver or other investments to another provider if their current fund engaged in activities inconsistent with their values. The NZ-wide polling, conducted by Colmar-Brunton in September, shows consumer demand for responsible and ethical investment is on the rise, as the responsible investment industry continues to grow in size and influence. “The rising consumer sentiment around ethical investing is reflected by the continuing growth in the responsible investment sector in NZ” said RIAA’s CEO Simon O’Connor. “The challenge lies with fund managers to develop and provide consumers with suitable products which match their interests, concerns and values.” Mindful Money’s founder and CEO, Barry Coates said “The survey shows that New Zealanders want to avoid investing in companies that do not reflect their values – human rights violations and labour rights abuses top the list. Now, for the first time, investors can see where their funds are invested by using the Fund Checker on Mindful Money’s website.”

The Financial Adviser Standards and Ethics Authority’s (FASEA) Code of Ethics (The Code) is just around the corner, coming into force on 1 January 2020. And while The Code lays the foundations of clear principles and values required for a new age of professionalism for financial advice in Australia, it goes one step further. For the first time, ethical and responsible investment is being bought to the fore.

Investors have collaborated to produce a best-practice guide to reporting under Australia’s Modern Slavery Act. Developed by the Australian Council of Superannuation Investors (ACSI) and Responsible Investment Association Australasia (RIAA), the best-practice guide builds on the Australian Government’s guidance. The new Act has requirements for organisations in reporting the risks of modern slavery in their operations and supply chains. The ACSI/RIAA guide provides information for investors on how to incorporate investments into their modern slavery reporting and meaningfully address modern slavery risks. ACSI CEO Louise Davidson said the new guide was developed to help investors report under the Act. “Modern Slavery is likely to exist in the operations or supply chains of most businesses. Beyond the devastating human impact, poor management of human rights impacts upon the commercial success, stability and longevity of investments,” she said. “ACSI and RIAA have collaborated to ensure investors have a clear path on how to tackle these issues and promote sustainability in their operations and supply chains. We encourage investors and companies to report within the spirit of the new law and work to develop their capacity to identify, manage, address and remediate modern slavery risks and impacts.” “It will take time and global effort to address modern slavery. Effective reporting will help to drive global awareness and ultimately improvement in practices. Investors are well placed to lead the change.” She said. RIAA CEO Simon O’Connor said the guide has been designed to help investors lead with action in respecting human rights and tackling modern slavery.

Impact investing is set to grow exponentially in Aotearoa New Zealand over coming years with strong interest from all types of investors including those not yet active in the field, according to a landmark study launched today. 99 investors – accounting for more than $83.5 billion of New Zealand’s assets under management – participated in New Zealand’s inaugural impact investment survey conducted by the Responsible Investment Association Australasia (RIAA) in partnership with The University of Auckland. Respondents included investors already active in impact investing as well as those not yet active in the field, and comprised investment managers, impact investment fund managers, trusts, foundations, not for profit organisations, individuals, family offices and diversified financial institutions. Impact Investor Insights Aotearoa New Zealand 2019, sponsored by AMP Capital, reveals that investors anticipate allocating a total of $5.9 billion to impact investing in the medium term. This would represent a six-fold increase in the capital currently deployed in impact investments, with $889 million of respondents’ capital currently earmarked as impact investments. Impact investing is set to grow exponentially in Aotearoa New Zealand over coming years with strong interest from all types of investors including those not yet active in the field, according to a landmark study launched today. 99 investors – accounting for more than $83.5 billion of New Zealand’s assets under management – participated in New Zealand’s inaugural impact investment survey conducted by the Responsible Investment Association Australasia (RIAA) in partnership with The University of Auckland. Respondents included investors already active in impact investing as well as those not yet active in the field, and comprised investment managers, impact investment fund managers, trusts, foundations, not for profit organisations, individuals, family offices and diversified financial institutions. Impact Investor Insights Aotearoa New Zealand 2019, sponsored by AMP Capital, reveals that investors anticipate allocating a total of $5.9 billion to impact investing in the medium term. This would represent a six-fold increase in the capital currently deployed in impact investments, with $889 million of respondents’ capital currently earmarked as impact investments. “This Report makes an important contribution to understanding how the demand for impact investing is shaping in New Zealand. It provides new insights into investors’ awareness and interest in impact investing, as well as the future prospects and challenges facing the growing field,” said Simon O’Connor, RIAA CEO.

was fortunate to spend last week in Paris, with 1700 others at the annual PRI in Person, the largest ever global conference of responsible investors. It was a week full of rich content, which allowed a global sharing of latest practices, regulatory developments and a strong focus on what kind of role the finance sector will play in confronting the great challenges of our time, not least, climate change.