Asset Owner Technical Guide: Appointment

Asset owners increasingly include ESG considerations in their investment management agreements (IMAs) and other legal documentation. More than two-thirds (69%) of PRI asset owner signatories typically implement ESG
requirements in contracts such as IMAs and limited partner agreements (LPAs).1 To ensure that investment managers abide by their clients’ ESG requirements, certain legal aspects are becoming standard features of the asset owner-investment manager relationship.

The PRI believes that ESG should be at the core of the relationship between the asset owner and the investment manager. To reflect the importance of these issues, clauses like those set out in the sample ESG clauses section of this document should be included in the agreements governing that contractual arrangement.

Click here to read the full paper.

Sponsored Content

Leave a Comment

Climate the No.1 priority for 2021

Climate the No.1 priority for 2021

Climate is by far the number one sustainability priority for investors in 2021 according to a poll of asset owners from more than 32 countries which came together for the Top1000funds.com online Sustainability event in March.

Sort content by

Sustainability yearbook 2021

S&P Global has published its annual yearbook showcasing the sustainability performance of the world’s largest companies. Over 7,000 companies were assessed as part of the 2020 S&P Global Corporate Sustainability Assessment (CSA), which resulted in 70 gold class, 74 silver class, and 98 bronze class medals being awarded to companies in the Sustainability Yearbook 2021.

Regulation will enhance sustainability

Integrating sustainability into investments will become much higher profile under new EU regulations that take effect this year. Coming into force over the course of 2021, the EU’s Sustainable Finance Action Plan represents one of the most impactful pieces of regulation to hit the investment management industry since MiFID II beefed up reporting and transparency in 2018.  A core tenet of the plan is the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR), which will classify investment funds according to their sustainability credentials for the first time.

The future of energy

The election of Joe Biden as America’s 46th President is just one more important signal that change is imminent, for energy markets and the broader economy. With the world aligned and committed in the fight against climate change, the global movement towards a sustainable energy supply is gaining considerable momentum.

AM’s yet to embrace sustainability

Proxy voting is a powerful tool for shareholders to steer corporate agendas towards sustainability-focused decision making. Despite the increased attention to the integration of sustainability in investment solutions, asset managers generally vote against environmental and social proposals. This trend is more pronounced among large and passive players.

Big Book of Sustainable Investing

The title says it all. In The Big Book of SI, we analyze sustainable investing today and examine the trends that will shape our future. This new publication also gives investors guidelines on implementation, includes interviews with experts and client cases, and highlights the link between ESG integration and performance. All that in just 102 pages.

SWFs need to move on climate

Sovereign wealth funds need to take immediate action to mitigate the effects of climate change, according to a first of its kind survey of sovereign wealth funds.

Previous