Tuesday, 8 October 2024: First Sentier Investors, a leading global investment manager, today announces that it is setting its first nature targets as a Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) Adopter, in the lead up to the inaugural Global Nature Positive Summit hosted in Sydney this week.
The TNFD offers recommendations and guidance to organisations and provides them with risk management and disclosure frameworks to act on evolving nature related dependencies, impacts, risks and opportunities. TNFD Adopters have registered their intention to making public disclosures in their corporate reporting in the financial years 2023, 2024 or 2025 against the TNFD Recommendations.
Kate Turner, Global Head of Responsible Investment at First Sentier Investors, said: “As a TNFD Adopter, we continue our role as responsible active stewards of our clients’ capital. We are pleased to affirm our commitment to improving nature reporting and ongoing engagement with investee companies to reduce nature-related impacts, mitigate risks, identify and value dependencies and seize opportunities.
“These targets are also a natural step forward for First Sentier Investors, since becoming a signatory of the Finance for Biodiversity (FfB) Pledge in 2021. As part of our FfB pledge to set goals to reduce our organisation’s impacts on nature and biodiversity, we are pleased to formalise the progress we have made as a business in this area by setting our inaugural nature targets,” continued Ms Turner.
First Sentier Investors’ initial nature targets will be published later this week. Disclosure on the organisation’s progress against these targets will be integrated into its climate and nature report, published in 2025. As a member of the FfB Foundation’s Target Setting Working Group, the targets are aligned with Initiation Targets recommended in the Nature Target Setting Framework for Asset Managers and Asset Owners prepared by the FfB Working Group in 2024.
First Sentier Investors’ nature targets for 2025 will span three key areas:
- Governance: Disclose a clear firm-wide governance structure for nature, outlining board oversight and management responsibilities in an integrated manner with the existing governance structure for broader environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues.
- Assessment: Conduct and publicly disclose an assessment of dependencies, impacts, risks and opportunities for in-scope investments (listed equities and corporate bonds).
- Training: All relevant employees will have completed training on the relation between nature loss and investment.
Joanne Lee, Responsible Investment Director at First Sentier Investors, said: “While these will be initial targets, they set a clear direction for our firm’s future endeavours. They build on the progress that the business has already made in this area and align with the TNFD’s four disclosure pillars.”
The nature targets are an extension of the firm’s work to date. It has established board oversight and management responsibilities within its ESG and climate governance structure, trained investment teams on nature since 2022 and disclosed sector level impacts and dependencies across its listed equities investments in its 2022 and 2023 Responsible Investment Report.
“Importantly, we believe in the role that investors play in directing global financial flows away from nature-negative outcomes and toward nature-positive outcomes which aligns with the TNFD’s objective,” concluded Lee.
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About First Sentier Investors
First Sentier Investors is a global asset management group providing high quality, differentiated and relevant investment capabilities to deliver exceptional investment performance for our clients. Today, across the First Sentier Investors Group, we manage £119.8 billion (€141.3 billion)* in assets across global and regional equities, cash and fixed income, infrastructure and property, and alternative credit.
We are home to investment teams and brands such as AlbaCore Capital Group, FSSA Investment Managers, Igneo Infrastructure Partners, RQI Investors and Stewart Investors. All investment teams operate with discrete investment autonomy, according to their investment philosophies and based on responsible investment principles.
Our organisation was acquired by Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking Corporation, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc in August 2019. We operate as a standalone global investment management business with offices across Europe, the Americas, and Asia Pacific.
We are a globally Certified B Corporation and signatory to the UK Stewardship Code.
*N.B. First Sentier Investors’ gross AUM, inclusive of associated strategic partnership with AlbaCore Capital Group, as of 30 June 2024.
Important information
In the UK, issued by First Sentier Investors (UK) Funds Limited which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (registration number 143359). Registered office Finsbury Circus House, 15 Finsbury Circus, London, EC2M 7EB number 2294743.
In the EEA, issued by First Sentier Investors (Ireland) Limited, which is authorised and regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland. First Sentier Investors (Ireland) Limited is registered in the Republic of Ireland, No: 629188. Registered offices: 70 Sir John Rogerson’s Quay, Dublin 2, Ireland.
Elsewhere, issued by First Sentier Investors International IM Limited which is authorised and regulated in the UK by the Financial Conduct Authority (registered number 122512). Registered office: 23 St. Andrew Square, Edinburgh, EH2 1BB number SCO79063.
First Sentier Investors entities referred to in this document are part of First Sentier Investors a member of MUFG, a global financial group. First Sentier Investors includes a number of entities in different jurisdictions. MUFG and its subsidiaries do not guarantee the performance of any investment or entity referred to in this document or the repayment of capital. Any investments referred to are not deposits or other liabilities of MUFG or its subsidiaries, and are subject to investment risk including loss of income and capital invested.
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