SWITZERLAND – The Swiss Federal Social Security Fund (Ausgleichsfonds der Alters -und Hinterlassenenversicherung) has awarded a CHF500m (e326m) passive socially responsible investment (SRI) mandate to State Street Global Advisors (SSGA).

Dominique Salamin, deputy managing director of the Swiss fund, comments:
“ We took the decision to review the investment management structure of the fund and in particular the asset allocation process, as a result of the decision taken by the Swiss parliament to allow this fund to invest in foreign equities. We were impressed by State Street Global Advisor’s experience as a leading global index manager and its ability to provide a cost effective and tailored investment solution.”

SSGA’s The brief is to track the Dow Jones’s sustainability group world index (DJSGI), which consists of more than 200 companies in 64 industry groups in 33 countries.
“An increasing number of investors are now integrating economic, environmental and social criteria into their portfolio decisions. This new mandate for the fund shows how much sustainability has already moved into mainstream investing,” says Alexander Barkawi, managing director of DJSGI.

The Dow Jones index consists of a global, European, North American, Pacific and a US index, and specialised indexes, which exclude either one or all of the following industries: alcohol, gambling and tobacco.

The investment manager already manages a CHF500m Swiss equity index mandate for the federal fund, and US$703bn (e803bn) worldwide