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State Street Global Advisors’ ESG assets surge 39% to $119bn

CEO Hooley wants State Street to become an ESG leader

By
Daniel Brooksbank
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Environmental, social and governance assets under management at fund management giant State Street Global Advisors surged by almost 40% to the end of last year – with top management hoping the company can become a leader in ESG.

“With $119bn in total assets at December 31 2010, SSgA’s ESG assets increased by 39% from the firm’s year-end 2009 ESG asset levels,” parent State Street said in its new annual corporate responsibility report. ESG approaches include negative and positive screening, best-in-class sustainability and ESG factor integration.

It has broadened the scope of its Executive Environmental Sustainability Committee and has set up a new Executive Corporate Responsibility Committee, which recently approved a set of global environmental sustainability goals. State Street also announced an ESG reporting relationship with F&C Investments earlier this year.

The Boston-based company also said that it made its US Community Investing Index Strategy, initially offered on a separate-account basis, available on a commingled basis late in 2010.In addition it launched a suite of products aimed at the Dutch institutional market, including a screened index equity strategy that excludes cluster munitions, land mines and labour issues.

“My vision for State Street includes becoming a leader in environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues,” said Chairman, President and Chief Executive Jay Hooley.

The bank resisted a proposal tabled by Trillium Asset Management at its annual shareholder meeting in May calling for disclosure of political donations. In the event, the motion was narrowly defeated by 179.8m votes to 141.7m.

The corporate responsibility report adheres to Global Reporting Initiative criteria and is assured by Det Norske Veritas.

Meanwhile, the bank has announced a new round of cost cutting, saying it plans to cut 850 jobs over the next 20 months. This is in addition to the 1,400 redundancies outlined last year. State Street has $22.6trn in assets under custody and administration and $2.1trn under management