Stockholm (NordSIP) – After spending more than ten years in a sales role at Morningstar, proposing data and analytics to asset managers and the finance industry and a little over three years at Intervalor introducing asset managers to institutional investors, it was time for Josefine Lantz (pictured) to take a new step in her career. She recently joined Storebrand Asset Management as a sales director for institutional clients.
“I am very impressed with Storebrand’s focus on sustainability, both as a company and as part of their investment strategies. I found the broad product range, in a multi-boutique approach, very appealing. Also, being a large Nordic organization in a position to make a big impact on the transition to a green environment is a very unique position that I’m now proud to be part of,” Lantz tells NordSIP.
Having a significant range or products is key to satisfy the variety of needs of Swedish institutions. “The broad offerings in active and passive equity investments, factor investments, fixed income, private equity, infrastructure and real estate as well as management of the entire portfolios, including strategic and tactical asset allocation, gives us the opportunity to work very closely with institutional clients based on their needs,” Lantz continues.
“We are a large organization which gives us muscles and trust, but at the same time agile and focused on digitalization and the client experience. The focus on product innovation has made Storebrand and subsidiary SPP Fonder early with bringing new products to the market, for example, the SPP Plus funds and the SPP Grön Obligationsfond. The co-investments with SPP- and Storebrand Life Insurance gives credibility and alignment of interest with our clients,” she adds.
This focus on sustainability started already 30 years ago and is now well embedded across products and asset classes. “We have put, in particular, a lot of emphasis on identifying solution companies and companies well-positioned for the sustainability transition. Another example is how well SPP Fonder has succeeded in incorporating sustainability in the quantitative strategies while still maintaining a low tracking error. Our Swedish real estate portfolio is ranked number one in the GRESB rating for 2020,” Lantz points out.
The need for strong sustainability credentials has become a must in the competitive institutional market in the Nordics. “There is certainly an evolution, or focus, to include sustainability in all asset classes including alternatives. There is a clear and increasing demand for impact investing and for products with a measurable sustainability effect, for instance, renewable energy or water. The increased use of SDGs as a framework where investors identify and measure the goals most closely aligned with and relevant for them is another example,” says Lantz.
Lantz is also enthusiastic about this shift from a personal standpoint. “I’m very excited about the direction towards impact and solutions,” she says. “There has been a lot of focus on the process for sustainability, but we are getting closer to measure the actual impact of the sustainability work, the EU Taxonomy and the measurement against SDGs are examples (even though they don’t cover all aspects of sustainability). The implementation of a common language and a common standard through SFDR that simplifies product comparison and evaluation for investors is another step in the right direction,” she concludes.
