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The Week in Green

January 11th Edition

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New Year, Good News

The year starts with exciting news on the sustainability front, as Dutch sustainability data firm Sustainalytics takes over Stockholm-headquartered engagement, screening and voting service provider GES International in a friendly deal. NordSIP talked to Hanna Roberts, CEO of GES who shares her enthusiasm about becoming a one-stop shop to help investors and companies make more sustainable choices.

Also in the new year, the Swedish hedge fund house Brummer & Partners added nuclear weapons to its exclusion list. The funds involved in the firm’s flagship multi-strategy fund will also abstain from holding thermal coal-related companies on the long side, while retaining the option to short the stocks. Meanwhile, global rating agency Fitch Ratings announced the introduction of ESG scores. The launch of these “Relevance Scores“, which highlight which ESG factors impact individual credit rating decisions, counts as a small green revolution in the CRA world.

In the dark (Nordic) hours of 2018, NordSIP caught up with Lombard Odier’s Arnaud Langlois as he visited Stockholm. He talked about his strategy, Terre Neuve, a long/short equity fund integrating ESG at its core. Also before the holidays, the AP funds’ Ethical Council announced that three cannabis-related companies would join their exclusion list, based on a deemed breach of international treaties Sweden has signed. NordSIP also noted the early commitment of Norwegian pension fund KLP in NextPower III International Solar, a new private equity fund focused on solar power.

Last but not least, Danske Bank’s Lars Mac Key shared some numbers on the strong growth of the green bond market in SEK. We found that Financials have made a strong contribution to the development of green finance in 2018 and that real estate is still dominating the Corporate issuers’ segment.

Heard on E-Street

Further good news from the Netherlands, where, IPE reports, civil service pension fund ABP completed the divestment of €4bn worth of holdings in nuclear arms manufacturers and tobacco producers in 2018. Meanwhile, French manager la Financière de l’Echiquier (LFDE) joins the firm-wide integraton club, with the announcement that ESG will be integrated to its entire fund range. More locally, Nordea launched its North American ESG equitiy strategy in Europe.

As we say in Sweden, God Fortsättning!

Your NordSIP team

Picture © Shutterstock

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