Stockholm (NordSIP) – Nordea announced a push into ESG during the first week of March. The asset management arm will partner with Jan Ståhlberg’s in Trill Impact, a joint venture which will invest in unlisted companies aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals. On the same day, the firm also announced the launch of its new Global Gender Diversity Fund, which will invest in companies that actively work with gender equality.
Jan Ståhlberg was one of the founders of EQT and has previously been Deputy Managing Partner and Vice Chairman of the venture capital firm. He left the firm in 2018, after 24 years heading the Asian and US businesses.
“By establishing Trill Impact, I want to steer investments towards ideas that will make the world a better place. I am convinced that such investments are possible. It is a real advantage to have Nordea as an important partner in this work, where they can contribute with their world-leading sustainability analysis,” says Jan Ståhlberg.
“We have a unique opportunity to incorporate ESG factors into capital investments, which will have a sustainable impact. Sustainability and ESG are megatrends that have come to stay. We see it as a duty and an opportunity to be a part of this development. We look forward to helping our customers take advantage of these opportunities,” says Nils Bolmstrand, head of Nordea Asset Management.
The launch of Nordea’s Global Gender Diversity Fund is motivated by recent research showing that increased diversity in the areas of gender and ethnicity has a positive impact on profitability.
“As companies compete for the best employees, a company that can broaden their recruitment base gains an advantage over the competition. The goal is to give fund savers better returns than the market average,” says Julie Bech, who manages Nordea Global Gender Diversity Fund.
The fund will include a maximum of 100 companies from North and South America, Europe, Asia and emerging markets. The companies will be judged on the number of women on the board, in management and other parts of the business, equal pay, parental leave and mentoring programs for women.
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