NN Investment Partners appointed three executives to its new responsible investment team, said Jeroen Bos, head of equity specialties at the firm.
All three positions are new, and they will start March 1.
Adrie Heinsbroek was appointed head of the responsible investment team, reporting to Chief Investment Officer Hans Stoter. He will represent NN IP externally, advising clients on responsible investment policies and needs. He also will continue NN IP's existing environmental, social and governance work across research, portfolio construction and risk management of all strategies.
Mr. Heinsbroek was head of sustainability at ING Bank Belgium.
Faryda Lindeman will be senior corporate governance specialist. She currently works at ESG and corporate governance research and ratings firm Sustainalytics.
Johan van der Lugt was appointed senior ESG specialist, coordinating NN IP's ongoing commitment to enhancing ESG integration within the firm's investment process. He was a senior equity analyst for global financials at Robeco.
Mr. Bos said the team's primary goal is to drive the further development of responsible investing at the firm and to support all investment teams in their ESG integration and active ownership strategies.
Mr. Bos said the firm's commitment to responsible investing dates back 18 years, when it launched its first sustainable equity strategy and portfolio management team. It has since expanded coverage across all asset classes. “Since then the interest in ESG integration and responsible investing has been steadily growing and on the back of this we have been steadily expanding our resources and solutions in this area,” he said in an email.
The last two years or so have seen “a clear acceleration in the field of ESG integration, responsible investing and active ownership,” driven in part by institutional client interest and an increased focus from regulators. Interest spans Europe, the U.S. and Asia. “So starting this additional team was the logical next step as our aim is to maintain our leading position in the area of ESG integration and responsible investing,” he said.
NN IP, headquartered in The Hague, Netherlands, has €199 billion ($211.2 billion) of assets under management.
