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Responsible investment is a long-term movement whose time has come. How can its leaders take the movement further? This session examined the importance of impactful stewardship to deliver sustainable wealth creation and its potential to transform financial, social and environmental outcomes.[vc_quotes layout=”accordion” quotes=”%5B%7B%22name%22%3A%22Saker%20Nussebeih%20CBE%22%2C%22job_role%22%3A%22Chief%20executive%2C%20International%20at%20Federated%20Hermes%20(United%20Kingdom)%22%2C%22content%22%3A%22Saker%20Nussebeih%20is%20chief%20executive%20of%20the%20international%20business%20of%20Federated%20Hermes%2C%20appointed%20November%202011%2C%20having%20joined%20in%20June%202009%20as%20chief%20investment%20officer.%20He%20is%20also%20a%20member%20of%20the%20Federated%20Hermes%20Executive%20team.%20Prior%20to%20this%2C%20Nussebeih%20was%20global%20head%20of%20equities%20at%20Fortis%20Investments%2C%20having%20previously%20been%20CIO%20global%20equities%20since%202005.%20Before%20this%2C%20he%20was%20CIO%20of%20global%20equities%20and%20head%20of%20marketing%20for%20SGAM%20UK.%20This%20followed%20SGAM%E2%80%99s%20acquisition%20of%20Trust%20Company%20of%20the%20West%2C%20where%20Nussebeih%20was%20a%20managing%20director%20running%20global%20and%20international%20strategies%2C%20as%20well%20the%20London%20office.%20He%20started%20his%20career%20at%20Mercury%20Asset%20Management%20in%201987.%20%5CnNussebeih%20is%20founder%20of%20the%20300%20Club%20and%20was%20an%20inaugural%20member%20of%20the%20CFA%20Institute%E2%80%99s%20Future%20of%20Finance%20Advisory%20Council%20from%202013%20until%202019.%20He%20is%20a%20member%20of%20the%20IIRC%20Council%2C%20the%20FCA-PRA%20Climate%20Financial%20Risk%20Forum%2C%20the%20United%20Nations%20Environmental%20Programme%20Financial%20Initiative%20Steering%20Committee%2C%20the%20Banking%20Standards%20Board%2C%20the%20UK%20National%20Advisory%20Board%20on%20Impact%20Investing%2C%20and%20the%20advisory%20Board%20of%20the%20National%20Youth%20Orchestra.%5CnIn%202018%2C%20Nussebeih%20was%20named%20CEO%20of%20the%20Year%20at%20the%20Financial%20News%20Asset%20Management%20Europe%20Awards.%20He%20has%20a%20BA%20and%20PhD%20in%20Medieval%20History%20from%20King’s%20College%2C%20University%20of%20London.%5CnHe%20was%20awarded%20a%20CBE%20(Commander%20of%20the%20Order%20of%20the%20British%20Empire)%20in%20the%20Queen%E2%80%99s%202019%20New%20Year’s%20Honours%20list%20for%20services%20to%20Responsible%20Business%20and%20Finance.%22%2C%22image%22%3A%2233576%22%2C%22linkedin%22%3A%22https%3A%2F%2Fwww.linkedin.com%2Fin%2Fsaker-nusseibeh-cbe-6b15a85%2F%3ForiginalSubdomain%3Duk%22%7D%5D” title=”Speaker” el_class=””][vc_quotes layout=”accordion” quotes=”%5B%7B%22name%22%3A%22Amanda%20White%22%2C%22job_role%22%3A%22Director%2C%20institutional%20content%2C%20Conexus%20Financial%20(Australia)%22%2C%22content%22%3A%22White%20is%20responsible%20for%20the%20content%20across%20all%20Conexus%20Financial%E2%80%99s%20institutional%20media%20and%20events.%20She%20is%20responsible%20for%20directing%20the%20bi-annual%20Fiduciary%20Investors%20Symposium%20which%20challenges%20global%20investors%20on%20investment%20best%20practice%20and%20aims%20to%20place%20the%20responsibilities%20of%20investors%20in%20wider%20societal%2C%20and%20political%20contexts%2C%20as%20well%20as%20promote%20the%20long-term%20stability%20of%20markets%20and%20sustainable%20retirement%20incomes.%20She%20is%20the%20editor%20of%20conexust1f.flywheelstaging.com%2C%20the%20online%20news%20and%20analysis%20site%20for%20the%20world%E2%80%99s%20largest%20institutional%20investors.%20White%20has%20been%20an%20investment%20journalist%20for%20more%20than%2020%20years%20and%20has%20edited%20industry%20journals%20including%20Investment%20%26%20Technology%2C%20Investor%20Weekly%20and%20MasterFunds%20Quarterly.%20She%20was%20previously%20editorial%20director%20of%20InvestorInfo%20and%20has%20worked%20as%20a%20freelance%20journalist%20for%20the%20Australian%20Financial%20Review%2C%20CFO%2C%20Asset%20and%20Asia%20Asset%20Management.%20She%20has%20a%20Bachelor%20of%20Economics%20from%20Sydney%20University%20and%20a%20Master%20of%20Arts%20in%20Journalism%20from%20the%20University%20of%20Technology%2C%20Sydney.%20She%20was%20previously%20a%20columnist%20for%20the%20Canadian%20publication%2C%20Corporate%20Knights%2C%20which%20is%20distributed%20by%20the%20Globe%20and%20Mail%20and%20The%20Washington%20Post.%20White%20is%20currently%20a%20fellow%20in%20the%20Finance%20Leaders%20Fellowship%20at%20the%20Aspen%20Institute.%20The%20two-year%20program%20consists%20of%2022%20fellows%20and%20seeks%20to%20develop%20the%20next%20generation%20of%20responsible%2C%20community-spirited%20leaders%20in%20the%20global%20finance%20industry.%22%2C%22image%22%3A%2233531%22%2C%22linkedin%22%3A%22https%3A%2F%2Fwww.linkedin.com%2Fin%2Famanda-white-101a7515%2F%3ForiginalSubdomain%3Dau%22%7D%5D” title=”Moderator” el_class=””][vc_empty_space height=”10px”]
Long-term deep engagement on the issues that matter most leads to substantial outperformance versus the sector. Going forward, there will be an indisputable recognition by all investors that ownership of companies demands a critical element of stewardship.
Legitimate ESG managers have full integration, deep engagement with investee companies and a humility to accept that we are still learning. ESG is not a ‘do-gooder’ thing, it’s about doing capitalism better. I welcome every manager aiming to be an ESG manager. This is about us all winning, not one company winning.
Not believing in diversity is simply stupidity because it halves the supply chain.
COVID has taught us that culture, for example, has a real value in challenging circumstances which hasn’t always been truly acknowledged by investment analysis.
If you have a 30 year time horizon, expenditure on engagement is a value adding investment, not merely a cost.
Don’t bet on markets. Instead, invest and engage for the long-term. If you want to bet, go to Vegas, it’s a lot more fun.
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Poll results
Should stewardship be mandatory?[vc_line_chart x_values=”” values=”%5B%7B%22title%22%3A%22Yes%22%2C%22y_values%22%3A%2259%22%2C%22color%22%3A%22blue%22%7D%2C%7B%22title%22%3A%22No%22%2C%22y_values%22%3A%2224%22%2C%22color%22%3A%22pink%22%7D%2C%7B%22title%22%3A%22Maybe%22%2C%22y_values%22%3A%2218%22%2C%22color%22%3A%22chino%22%2C%22custom_color%22%3A%22%2350485b%22%7D%5D”]
One of the most important, upcoming challenges at CalSTRS is how the fund should evaluate Chinese investments from a human capital and environmental standpoint, says Chris Ailman, chief investment officer at the giant pension fund.
Stewardship and engagement will become an integral part of investment in the future, and asset owners need to write stewardship and non-financial objectives into their mandates with managers, according to Saker Nusseibeh, chief executive international of Federated Hermes.
Climate Action 100+ illustrates asset owners’ ability to come together to solve the tragedy of the commons, said Anne Simpson, managing investment director, board governance and sustainability at US pension giant CalPERS. She said once investors realise that risk and return comes from managing financial, human and natural capital then ESG became a fundamental part of investing.
Shardul Agrawala, head, environment and economy integration division at the OECD laid out the challenges and opportunities for governments to build back better. He highlighted the industries and that may undergo transformation and the underlying market failures that need fixing.
There is moment driven by the COVID-19 crisis to invest in line with the Sustainable Development Goals, according to chief executive of Robeco, Gilbert van Hassel. But investing in companies of the future, and avoiding risks of the past, requires real expertise and changing mindsets about investment poses one of the biggest challenge for investors.
Nigel Topping, Champion of COP26, says institutional investors should put their fund managers on notice to provide more net zero products. He was speaking at the Top1000funds.com Sustainability conference in a session detailing how asset owners can move towards net zero.
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