ESG Investor’s weekly round-up of news about funds designed to meet sustainable investing criteria.
Artemis Fund Managers has launched the Artemis Positive Future Fund. The global equity fund will invest in disruptive and innovative companies that are having a substantial impact on society, aiming to outperform the MSCI AC World index. The fund will be managed by Craig Bonthron, Neil Goddin, Jonathan Parsons and Ryan Smith. “We believe the best long-term opportunities for growth lie in companies that are addressing the challenges of sustainability. Our aim is to identify emerging performance and sustainability are our objectives,” said Bonthron.
NN Investment Partners has launched the NN Sovereign Green Bond fund, adding to its existing green bond offering. The fund aims to have a positive environmental impact through the projects it finances. Following this launch, NN IP now offers green bond funds covering aggregate, corporate, sovereign and an option for a fund with a short duration, ensuring investors have maximum flexibility. “Whilst in the past, investor demand for green bonds mainly came from impact investors, we now see more typical fixed income investors allocating to green bonds as well. These investors are looking to make their portfolio more sustainable without sacrificing financial performance,” said Bram Bros, Lead Portfolio Manager for Green Bonds at NN IP.
Amundi launched a new climate investment strategy, the Just Transition for Climate fund. The main objective of the fund is to reduce carbon emissions, maintaining a carbon footprint that’s 20% lower than its benchmark – Bloomberg Barclays Euro Aggregate Corporate index. It will include a ‘just transition’ score, incorporating the different social aspects involved in the transition to a low-carbon economy, such as the impact on employees and local communities. “The Just Transition for Climate fund is the first attempt to provide investors with a unique solution to measure and integrate the financial risks associated with climate change and use their investments for an inclusive transition in line with the Paris Agreement,” said Jean-Jacques Barberis, Head of the Institutional and Corporate Clients Division and ESG at Amundi.
The French asset manager, which also announced plans to acquire ETF specialist Lyxor Asset Management, launched an ultra-short corporate bond ESG ETF, offering exposure to bonds with a maturity between one month and one year. The Amundi Euro Corp 0-1Y ESG UCITS ETF (ECR1) is listed on Deutsche Boerse and will track the iBoxx MSCI ESG EUR Corporate 0-1 TCA index.
Aegon Asset Management’s Global Equity Fund is transitioning its investment policy, following investor demand. It will become the Aegon Sustainable Equity Fund (effective from June 1 2021), following the success of the Dublin-domiciled Aegon Global Sustainable Equity Fund (GSEF). It will adopt the same sustainable investment philosophy and criteria as GSEF and will be managed by the same team. “We have seen strong demand for our responsible investment products and the update to our Global Equity Fund is borne out of client demand for a UK-domiciled version of our Dublin-registered fund,” said Stephen Jones, Global Equities CIO at Aegon AM.
Fidelity International has expanded the breadth of its sustainable ETF range with the launch of two fixed income ETFs. The Fidelity Sustainable Global Corporate Bond Multifactor UCITS ETF and the Fidelity Sustainable USD EM Bond UCITS ETF are both classified as Article 8 funds under the EU’s Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR). The ETFs employ a systematic active strategy in which at least 70% of investment will be invested in the securities of companies with strong ESG characteristics. “Incorporating sustainable investing principles has become the key priority for many of our clients globally and we can now offer access to our proprietary research capabilities across asset classes in a transparent, cost effective structure,” said Nick King, Head of ETFs at Fidelity.
