ESG

Hear from leading ESG experts from ISS ESG, MSCI, Sustainalytics and FTSE Russell on the big ESG themes for the coming year.

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.”

10 October 2019: Ethical Investment Week: The Second Wave of Sustainability This ‘first wave’ of the ‘Sustainability Revolution’ has demonstrated how government policy and economics can drive dramatic changes in relatively short periods of time and rapidly reshape global industries. In this webinar we will briefly discuss the ‘second wave’ of the Sustainability Revolution that will inevitably flow from increasingly serious and ambitious attempts to address global sustainability issues including climate change and beyond. Legislators and regulators around the world are already framing the scope of these changes which will be far broader and more disruptive.

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.

The Responsible Investment Association Australasia (RIAA) is announcing a suite of changes to its Certification Program, which reflect the rapidly maturing responsible investment (RI) market and a global focus on best practice. These changes strengthen the program, tighten the standards and provide better information to consumers and their advisers.

5 September 2019: ASFI: EU Sustainable Finance Taxonomy Briefing On 5 September, the Australian Sustainable Finance Initiative hosted a webinar discussion with Nathan Fabian, Chief Responsible Investment Officer at the United Nations-supported Principles for Responsible Investment, who provided an update on the EU taxonomy for sustainable activities.

Responsible investing has emerged as a fundamental practice for New Zealand’s funds managers, and now accounts for more than 70 percent of total assets under management (AUM), according to the latest Benchmark Report issued by the Responsible Investment Association of Australasia (RIAA). The fifth annual NZ RIAA Benchmark Report, released today by RIAA Chief Executive Simon O’Connor, shows a deepening commitment and more diverse range of offerings by asset managers, confirming responsible investing is now the bedrock of good investing. With data compiled by KPMG, the Report shows the sector grew three percent to reach $NZ188 billion in 2018. This represents a threefold increase on the NZ$58 billion invested in responsible funds only five years ago, at the end of 2013. Assets managed in accordance with responsible environmental, social and governance (ESG)_ principles now represent 72 percent of New Zealand’s total NZ$261.4 billion in AUM. By comparison, responsible investment funds in Australia represent just 44% of total AUM, according to RIAA’s latest Australian Benchmark Report released last week. “Over the last year, we’ve seen responsible investment practices continue to mature as the focus shifts beyond avoiding investing in the most harmful industries, to seeking out investments that contribute positively to New Zealand communities and the planet, alongside delivering better financial outcomes,” Mr O’Connor said.