Eight money managers endorsed the One Planet Sovereign Wealth Fund Framework, set up by sovereign wealth funds that collectively manage $3 trillion in assets, to accelerate the integration of climate change issues into the management of large, long-term asset pools and improve long-term returns.
In forming the One Planet Asset Managers Initiative, Amundi, BlackRock, BNP Paribas Asset Management, Goldman Sachs Asset Management, HSBC Global Asset Management, Natixis Investment Managers, Northern Trust Asset Management and State Street Global Advisors committed to further the objectives set out by the funds to understand the implications of climate-related risks and opportunities within long-term investment portfolios.
At an event Wednesday hosted by France's President, Emmanuel Macron at the Elysee Palace in Paris, money managers, which collectively manage $15 trillion of assets under management, agreed to share investment practices, publish relevant research and engage with standard setters, regulators and the broader industry.
Abu Dhabi Investment Authority; Norges Bank Investment Managment, which runs the assets of the Government Pension Fund Global, Oslo; Qatar Investment Authority, Doha; Kuwait Investment Authority, Kuwait City; Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, Riyadh and New Zealand's SuperFund, Auckland since July 2018 engage across the investment chain to better understand the barriers and opportunities and interact with university researchers, standard setters, data providers and benchmarking agencies, as well as other sovereign wealth funds globally.
"The One Planet initiative helps to frame and direct action around managing climate change risk for some of the world's largest institutional investors," said Hugh Lawson, a managing director at Goldman Sachs AM responsible for ESG investing, in an email.
"We aim to advance the understanding of the implications of climate-related risks and opportunities within long-term investment portfolios through sharing of our investment practices with the members of the One Planet (funds) and publication of relevant research," said Johanna Lasker, head of official institutions at BNP Paribas Asset Management, who attended the launch event in Paris, in an email.
"The eight asset managers collectively account for more than one fifth of global assets under management, and their decision to work together towards the full integration of climate risks and opportunities into investment portfolios represents an important step towards the realization of sustainable markets," she said.
