Tech Is Down, But Far From Out of ESG Funds
It probably hasn’t escaped your notice that tech stocks have not been having a good year. But if you’re a sustainable investor, what you might not have noticed is that the mutual funds you own are likely to be heavily exposed to tech stocks.
CEO of $189B Ontario Fund Eyes Private Equity’s Turf
The head of one of North America’s biggest investors in private markets wants to cut its reliance on buyout firms and do more dealmaking on his own. Pension funds have been upping pressure on asset managers to apply more ESG awareness when investing their money.
How SFERS Achieved Its Top Ranking In Public Equity Investment | Han Pham, Director of Public Equities | Q&A
Han Pham is director of public equities at San Francisco Employees’ Retirement System (SFERS). In this interview, Han spoke about the challenges of public pension investing in a city known for its political activism, why SFERS became a thought leader in ESG investment, and how she and her team overhauled the SFERS public equities portfolio to achieve the top ranking among public pensions.
Present Value of Poli-tech | Emerging Markets Alternatives
Reconciling a sluggish global economy and all round uncertainty with rallying stock markets and tight spreads is preoccupying most minds today. While the market pundits seek to resolve the current di...
Biggest Pension Fund Craves More After Foray Into ESG Assets
The world’s largest pension fund aims to boost and broaden its socially responsible assets after buying them for the first time this year.
Individuals And Institutions Split On Benefits Of ESG Investing
Individuals believe the environmental, social, and ethical records of the companies they invest in are important, said Natixis, while professionals at institutions and within “the investment community” were more sceptical about the efficacy of these strategies, for example having concerns about performance measurement.
KKR Co-CEO George Roberts On Creating Social Enterprises
George R. Roberts, Co-CEO of KKR, has more than four decades of experience in private equity investing. In this interview, he discusses the social enterprises he has funded and created, and how KKR is doing more to become socially and environmentally conscious when investing
Top Global Pension Fund Assets Drop For First Time Since GFC
The world’s leading 300 pension funds’ total assets dropped by over 3% last year to a figure of US$14.8 trillion overall. However, Asia-Pacific (APAC) pensions delivered growth of about 1% during the year, according to newly-released research from Willis Towers Watson and P&I.
The analysis of the top 300 global pension funds revealed that despite recording the first drop in assets since the beginning of the 2008 global financial crisis (GFC), cumulative asset growth is almost 19% since then. The research also shows that the assets of the top six APAC funds increased by around 1% during 2015, as compared to a decrease of 2% for the top 20 funds. The six largest funds in APAC contributed to 41% of the total fund assets of the top 20 in the ranking.
Expected Return Key To Pension Plan ESG Investments
ERISA-covered pension plans may use ESG investment strategies, including avoiding gun firms, provided that such investments are expected to perform on a par with other available choices, attorneys told Bloomberg BNA in recent interviews.
Foundations Slowly Come Around to Responsible Investing
A new study released jointly by the Council on Foundations and Commonfund Institute found that a third of U.S. private, public and community foundations have implemented or are actively considering mission-related investing practices in managing their endowed assets.
However, impediments to adoption remain. Concern over returns was the single most commonly reported barrier, with 23% of foundations considering it a significant one and 48% a moderate one.
The study was conducted during this past winter among 52 U.S. private and public/community foundations, 49 private/family foundations, eight public foundations and 77 community foundations. Together, these institutions represented $39.7 billion in endowment assets as of Dec. 31, 2014.
The study is intended, the two groups said in a statement, as a tool for investment committees, board members and investment staffers who are exploring new strategy options.