ESG – actions speak louder than words
Adam Ruddle, September 2021
More people are thinking seriously about their impact on global climate change and sustainability challenges through the investment of their pension savings. Senior Investment Manager, Adam Ruddle, explores how we’re taking this demand seriously through the integration of ESG principles within the investment strategy of our Smoothed Managed Funds.
ESG funds are firmly in the spotlight at the moment.
With a surge of new and revamped ESG funds launching in recent months, you would be forgiven for thinking that it is only a passing fad for investors.
But more people are thinking seriously about their impact on global climate change and sustainability challenges through the investment of their pension savings. Research from the LV= Wealth and Wellbeing Monitor found that 26% of mass affluent savers plan to be more environmentally conscious over the next year.
For LV=, being increasingly aware of environmental, social and governance aims has always been integral to our investment strategy. ESG principles have been well integrated across LV= portfolios since 2011, long before it became mainstream. We have worked hard over the last year to develop the LV= Responsible Investment Framework as part of our sustainable investment strategy.
In 2020, only 0.1% of equity assets in our main with-profits fund and our three Smoothed Managed Funds were invested in companies with at least 25% revenue generated from coal use, production or extraction.