Stockholm (NordSIP) – CFA Society Sweden has awarded the 2024 ESG Award to Institutionella Ägares Förening (the Institutional Owners Association, IÄF) for its impactful work in strengthening ESG integration and promoting responsible ownership within Sweden’s capital markets.
The award, presented during the Society’s Annual Forecast Dinner on May 8, highlights IÄF’s strategic leadership in aligning executive incentives with sustainability performance. Anna Magnusson, Chief Active Ownership Officer at Första AP-Fonden (AP1) and a board member of IÄF, accepted the award on the association’s behalf.
John Howchin, a senior member of CFA Sweden’s ESG Committee and responsible for the award’s nomination process, emphasised IÄF’s influence in setting new expectations for corporate boards. “IÄF has demonstrated actionable leadership by uniting institutional investors around a shared objective: linking executive compensation to material ESG outcomes,” Howchin told NordSIP. “This positions sustainability not as an add-on, but as a core driver of long-term financial performance.”
Founded in 2003, IÄF brings together Sweden’s largest institutional investors (including AP1–AP4, Alecta, AMF, Länsförsäkringar and several Swedish asset managers) to advance self-regulation, transparency, and effective governance in the equity market. Through active participation in Sweden’s self-regulatory bodies, IÄF ensures that institutional capital plays a constructive role in shaping market standards.
CFA Society Sweden launched the ESG Award in 2010 to recognise individuals and organisations that raise the bar for ESG practices in investment. Recent recipients include Global Child Forum, ChemSec, and the Anthropocene Fixed Income Institute.
For investors focused on governance quality and long-term value creation, IÄF’s work offers a leading example of collaborative stewardship and practical ESG implementation.
