ESG
In-depth reporting on ESG investing for our pension fund and asset management readers from our award-winning journalists
Latest news
NBIM to lead class action for first time, joining AP7 against SVB
Governance chief says important for SWF to take legal action where alleged conduct raises big concerns about market integrity
Church of England Pensions Board outlines strategic plan to reach climate transition goals
CEPB’s climate action plan focuses on key systemic risks like demand for fossil fuels, corporate climate lobbying, climate finance in emerging markets, says Adam Matthews
Investor coalition calls for phase out of unequal voting rights
It made recommendations to phase out dual-class structures tailored at different financial market participants
ISSB: Scope 3 emissions emerge as key challenge
ISSB’s Transition Implementation Resource Group will aim to understand what challenges constituents are facing and attempt to avoid diversity in practice
Special Report
Class actions by European investors on the rise in the name of good governance and fiduciary duty
Deepwater Horizon, Volkswagen (Dieselgate), Wirecard, Silcon Valley Bank and Credit Suisse are recent, high-profile examples of corporate wrong doing resulting in losses for investors. As stewards of retirement savings and guardians of beneficiaries’ interests, it is only natural that pension funds should scrutinise the investments they are making – or outsourcing to asset managers to make – on their members’ behalf. This is a central plank of fiduciary duty.
Special Report
European pension fund class actions take off on a steep learning curve
What positive developments can we report relating to class actions in UK and European pension funds? What regulatory challenges still need to be overcome to facilitate (for instance, simplify) the environment for class action by UK and European institutions? Where are the key gaps in knowledge among pension funds?
Special Report
Class actions: Is Europe catching up with the US?
Europe’s institutional investors are latching on to the rewards of joining class actions against investee companies. Many of these are securities lawsuits, pursued when a publicly listed company has not properly disclosed or has misrepresented significant information, affecting the share price when the truth emerges. But so far, the vast majority of these have been in the US. In 2022, nearly $4.9bn (€4.6bn) was recovered in the US courts, according to Institutional Shareholder Services. So, what about class actions in Europe? “The US has had a class action system for over a hundred years that can be adopted for almost every cause of action, whereas the UK has only had class actions since 2015 and it is only available for competition cases,” says Harry McGowan, partner in the securities litigation department at law firm Stewarts.
Special Report
Shareholder class actions in Europe: the benefits and risks of participating
Litigation outside the United States, and in particular in Europe, has been on the rise since the US Supreme Court’s landmark 2010 decision in Morrison v. National Australia Bank. In Morrison, the US Supreme Court ruled that “foreign” (non-US) investors cannot bring federal securities lawsuits in US courts to recover investment losses relating to foreign-issued securities traded on foreign exchanges (known as “F-cubed” claims). As former Justice Antonin Scalia explained, the concern was to prevent the US from becoming “the Shangri-La” of class-action litigation for lawyers representing those allegedly cheated in foreign securities markets. Although federal courts have since struggled to apply Morrison’s effect test consistently, it is clear, more than 10 years later, that the decision has had its intended effect.
Analysis
COP28: A choice between conflict and cooperation
Arab financials are ideal partners for European pension funds and investors, writes energy market expert Cyril Widdershoven
Features
Measuring emissions that did not happen
A few years ago, a footwear producer’s claim that it was reducing carbon emissions in the economy because its customers walked rather than took the car provoked amusement among investment managers. It wanted to prove its product was healthier and greener than competing transport modes by claiming credit for emissions prevented from petrol use. This autumn, assessments of the role played by individual low-carbon products in replacing fossil fuels are again under scrutiny in the finance sector.
Features
COP 28: A choice betweeen conflict and cooperation
All eyes are on COP28 2023, which started in Dubai at the end of November.
Special Report
Investors’ climate lobbying turns from corporates to sovereigns
Engagement efforts with companies on climate issues have fallen short, and investors are now raising the stakes by lobbying governments on climate policy
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Special Report
Prospects 2024: CIOs on what awaits investors
Asset management CIOs and strategists answer key questions about investment for the 12 months and beyond
Special Report
ESG Guide 2023: The future of sustainable finance
With or without the backlash against ESG in the US, big questions have been looming over the sustainable finance industry – like ‘is sustainable finance working?’.
Special Report
Is sustainable finance working?
Sustainability is now a top consideration for investors, but there is little evidence it is leading to a more sustainable economy
Special Report
Plenty left for EU sustainable finance policy to tackle
European policymakers have gone full throttle on sustainable finance over the past five years. Do they have the wherewithal to finish the job?
Features
Impact investment: How change theory can boost key messages
Simply aligning an investment with one of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) does not always convince individuals about the impact of an investment. Communicating about change can help.
Features
Ukraine: The mother of all impact investments
Institutional investors can play a crucial role in rebuilding Ukraine in a post-war future
Opinion Pieces
Emerging market investors should take the long view
For institutional investors, investing in emerging markets is a true test of fiduciary duty. The asset class – if it can be defined as such – has enormous potential, yet it is also risky, not just in terms of volatility but also of reputation.
Special Report
Natural capital: Investors press for impact
The focus is starting to shift from pure risk reporting to ensure that investments have a positive effect on declining biodiversity
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