Speakers
Australia’s proposed sustainable investment product labelling regime could be a watershed moment for market transparency, strengthening both institutional and retail investor confidence, lifting standards and tackling greenwashing head-on. So let’s design it right.
Labelling standards, their application and enforcement must engender consumer trust while preserving flexibility for product innovation. This will ensure that consumers and retail investors can make informed choices while retaining access to a set of diverse, values-aligned investment products.
In this session, leading practitioners in sustainable investment product design unpack what effective product labelling looks like in practice: from the use of sustainability terminology in product messaging, the robust implementation of responsible investment strategies and managing the complexity of these products with the increasing scrutiny. The discussion will explore how funds can make credible, evidence-based claims, meet evolving regulatory expectations and remain fit-for-purpose as consumer and retail investor demand for sustainable investment strategies continues to grow.
Chief Executive Officer Australia & Senior Investment Director of Dimensional Fund Advisors
Bhanu Singh is the CEO and Director of DFA Australia Limited as well as Senior Investment Director. Bhanu manages Dimensional’s business interests in Australia. He is also a member of Dimensional’s Investment Research Committee, which reviews potential investment strategy enhancements. He works closely with Dimensional’s research team to develop and implement solutions that are designed to help clients achieve their goals.
Bhanu has close to 20 years of industry experience. He started working for Dimensional in 2003 as a Trading Assistant, then became Head of Asia-Pacific Portfolio Management in 2015 before being named CEO in 2023.
Bhanu holds a BA in business economics with honours from UCLA and an MBA in analytical finance with honours from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.
RIAA Board Member & Head of Responsible Investment at Aware Super
Liza McDonald, Head of Responsible Investments, Aware Super Liza has over 20 years’ experience in the superannuation sector and is a specialist and passionate advocate for Responsible Investments and Sustainable Finance.
As Head of Responsible Investments , she has led the development and implementation of the Fund’s Responsible Investment policies, the execution of the Climate Change Strategy and also manages the ESG policy implementation including manager and asset class ESG reviews.
Liza joined Aware Super through our merger partner Health Super in December 2006 as an analyst in the Compliance, Legal and Risk Team. Before joining Aware Super, Liza held various roles at Mercer Legal where her primary focus was on trustee education and corporate secretarial duties.
Liza represents Aware Super on a number of working groups and committees including Investors Against Slavery & Trafficking APAC (IAST-APAC); ESG Research Australia; the Australian Sustainable Finance Initiative (ASFI); the Responsible Investment Association Australasia (RIAA); 40:40 Vision; the Australian Council of Superannuation Investors (ACSI) and the UN convened Global Investors for Sustainable Development Alliance (GISD).
Liza became a RIAA Board Member in December 2022.
Senior Manager Research Analyst at Morningstar
Shamir Popat is a senior analyst, manager research, forMorningstar*. He currently covers predominantly global and domestic equities,with additional responsibilities across multi-asset, ESG, and passivestrategies. Before joining Morningstar in 2022, Popat spent the previous yearas a senior investment analyst at a boutique investment consulting firm inSydney. Popat holds a bachelor’s degree in finance from La Trobe University anda bachelor’s degree in computing from Deakin University. *Morningstar AustralasiaPty Ltd (“Morningstar”) is a wholly owned subsidiary of Morningstar, Inc.
