Responsible Funds, Sept. 13: UBS, NNIP, Aviva, Schroders and more

UBS Asset Management says its Climate Aware strategy has surpassed $2bn in assets under management. It was launched in February 2017 and comprises: UBS Life Climate Aware World Equity Fund; UBS Common Contractual Fund – Global Climate Aware UCITS; UBS (CH) Investment Fund – Equities Global Climate Aware II I-X; and UBS (CH) Institutional Fund 2 – Equities Global Climate Aware II I-X.
Teachers Mutual Bank has become the first Australian bank to have its “wholesale short term deposits” – retail deposits, mortgages, and wholesale funding etc. – certified as “ethical or responsible” by the Responsible Investment Association Australasia (RIAA). The bank excludes investments in 14 different categories including tobacco, gambling, armaments, fossil fuels or any large-scale greenhouse polluting activities.
NN’s Green Bond Fund has passed €1bn in assets according to the Dutch investment manager. Since inception in 2016, the fund has achieved an annualised outperformance of 0.63% (gross of fees) against the benchmark, the Bloomberg Barclays MSCI Euro Green Bond Index. It claims the investments avoid 547,505 tonnes of CO2 annually, translating to the average annual emissions of 214 passenger cars for every €1m invested.
Dutch fund Pensioenfonds van de KAS BANK, which has €381m in assets under management, has awarded a €100m ESG global equities mandate to compatriot fund manager Actiam, following what was described as an “extensive selection process led by investment consultant Willis Towers Watson. The mandate, which aims to outperform the MSCI ACWI, aims to contribute to the “realisation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)” and mitigate “the negative impact on the planetary boundaries”.
US investment bank J.P. Morgan has launched a sustainability-focused global macro fund, Citywire reports. The JPMorgan Investment Funds – Global Macro Sustainable Fund, which will exclude controversial weapons, tobacco and fossil fuels, will be managed by a five-strong team, which includes Shrenick Shah, Benoit Lanctot, Josh Berelowitz, Rose Thomas and Lucy Reid.Commonfund, the $25.3bn fund manager for US non-profits, has launched a new manager portal for due diligence materials from women- and minority-owned money managers. The portal is designed to gather investment information specifically from diverse managers (defined as firms with 33% or more ownership by women, people of black or African American, Latino/Hispanic, Asian, Native or Pacific Islander descent, veterans and/ or people with disabilities). Managers who submit materials through the portal by November 1 will have their submissions reviewed before the end of 2019.
The pension fund-backed Taaleri SolarWind II fund has bought the Haram wind farm in western Norway for an undisclosed price. Construction on the 34MW facility will start shortly, said Taaleri Energia, a Helsinki based renewable fund manager and developer. The fund’s investors include the European Investment Bank, Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Company, Varma Mutual and others. The project was developed by Zephyr, who will run the wind farm.
Aviva Investors has launched a new fund to focus on the low-carbon transition according to reports. Citywire Selector, citing the company, said the Aviva Investors Climate Transition European Equity, with €100m seeding from Aviva France, would be managed by Françoise Cespedes. She will work alongside Rick Stathers, the former Schroders and CDP executive who is a senior global responsible investment analyst and climate change specialist at Aviva.
Schroders has launched a group of funds called the Global Transformation Range with offerings covering climate change, energy transition and sustainable growth amongst others.
Dutch investment manager Robeco has launched a new sustainable emerging market equities fund. The Robeco Sustainable Emerging Stars Equities, which will consist of a concentrated portfolio of between 35-50 companies, will, it is claimed, have a significantly better ESG profile and environmental footprint than its benchmark, the MSCI Emerging Markets Index.