Skip to main content
MENU
Subscribe
  • Sign Up Free
  • LOGIN
  • Subscribe
  • Topics
    • Alternatives
    • Consultants
    • Courts
    • Defined Contribution
    • ESG
    • ETFs
    • Face to Face
    • Hedge Funds
    • Industry Voices
    • Investing
    • Money Management
    • Partner Content
    • Pension Funds
    • Private Equity
    • Real Estate
    • Regulation
    • SECURE 2.0
    • Special Reports
    • Washington
    • White Papers
  • Rankings & Awards
    • 1,000 Largest Retirement Plans
    • Top-Performing Managers
    • Largest Money Managers
    • DC Money Managers
    • DC Record Keepers
    • Largest Hedge Fund Managers
    • World's Largest Retirement Funds
    • Best Places to Work in Money Management
    • Excellence & Innovation Awards
    • WPS Innovation Awards
    • Eddy Awards
  • ETFs
    • Latest ETF News
    • Fund Screener
    • Education Center
    • Equities
    • Fixed Income
    • Commodities
    • Actively Managed
    • Alternatives
    • ESG Rated
  • ESG
    • Latest ESG News
    • The Institutional Investor’s Guide to ESG Investing
    • ESG Sustainability - Gaining Momentum
    • ESG Investing | Industry Brief
    • Innovation in ESG Investing
    • 2023 ESG Investing Conference
    • ESG Rated ETFs
  • Defined Contribution
    • Latest DC News
    • The Plan Sponsor's Guide to Retirement Income
    • DC Money Manager Rankings
    • DC Record Keeper Rankings
    • Innovations in DC
    • Trends in DC: Focus on Retirement Income
    • 2023 Defined Contribution East Conference
  • Searches & Hires
    • Latest Searches & Hires News
    • Searches & Hires Database
    • RFPs
  • Research Center
    • The P&I Research Center
    • Earnings Tracker
    • Endowment Returns Tracker
    • Corporate Pension Contribution Tracker
    • Pension Fund Returns Tracker
    • Pension Risk Transfer Database
  • Careers
  • Events
    • View All Conferences
    • View All Webinars
    • 2023 Canadian Pension Risk Strategies
    • 2023 Retirement Income
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. ESG
January 09, 2020 12:35 PM

BlackRock joins $41 trillion investor climate campaign

Bloomberg
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Reprints Print
    Bloomberg
    BlackRock joins more than 370 global investors already participating in the initiative.

    BlackRock Inc. added its considerable heft to a group of investors that's pressing the world biggest emitters of greenhouse gases to change their ways.

    The addition of the world's largest fund manager is a significant milestone for Climate Action 100 Plus, bringing total assets under management by its members to more than $41 trillion. The group already has some notable victories in its campaign of engagement with corporate giants that account for more than two-thirds of global industrial emissions.

    Last year, BP agreed to report in detail on how its investments are compatible with the Paris climate agreement after shareholders supported a resolution proposed by the activist group. It has also extracted pledges from Royal Dutch Shell and commodities giant Glencore.

    "This announcement from BlackRock will lead to some uncomfortable shuffling in the board rooms of 'Big Oil,' power utilities and other carbon intensive industries," Mark Campanale, founder and chairman of Carbon Tracker, said in an emailed statement.

    Polluter pressure

    BlackRock joins more than 370 global investors already participating in the initiative, which has the ambition of becoming the biggest, richest, and possibly most benevolent bully the corporate world has ever seen. It is cajoling companies to detail exactly how climate change will affect their business, so shareholders can pull money from those that aren't preparing for the future.

    "BlackRock's decision to sign on to Climate Action 100 Plus reinforces that the world's largest asset manager believes that climate change is a growing financial risk to both companies and the global economy," said Mindy Lubber, a member of the Climate Action 100 Plus steering committee and also CEO of Ceres, which campaigns for sustainable investment. Its involvement "sends a powerful signal to companies to reduce emissions, improve corporate governance and strengthen their disclosure."

    Climate change is becoming an increasingly important topic in the asset management industry. Protesters and non-profit groups are ramping up criticism of the largest fund managers for what they say is insufficient action around the global environmental crisis. Investor money is starting to follow, with environmental, social and governance, or ESG, investment strategies for exchange-traded funds drawing in a record $8 billion in 2019, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

    Critical issue

    BlackRock has come under pressure for doing too little to tackle climate change. Boston Trust Walden and Mercy Investment Services submitted shareholder proposals to BlackRock, Vanguard Group and J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., blasting the firms for failing to align their public stance on the issue with their proxy voting records.

    The New York-based asset manager has been promoting products with ESG-minded strategies. In 2018, it introduced a series of sustainable ETFs meant to serve as the core building blocks of an investor's portfolio. It also offers products with more targeted goals, like the iShares Global Clean Energy ETF, a fund first introduced in 2008 that holds about $444 million in assets.

    Joining Climate Action 100 Plus "is a natural progression of the work our investment stewardship team has done," BlackRock said in an emailed statement. "We believe evidence of the impact of climate risk on investment portfolios is building rapidly and we are accelerating our engagement with companies on this critical issue."

    Related Articles
    BlackRock, Vanguard face shareholder rebuke over climate votes
    Large managers don't engage enough with companies on climate – study
    Investors call on companies, world governments to do more on climate change
    Recommended for You
    DOL-exterior-main_i.jpg
    DOL ESG rule is 'product of reasoned decision making,' Justice Department says
    American Airlines-main_i.jpg
    American Airlines sued over ESG investments in 401(k) plans
    Plastic_Bags_i.jpg
    World delegates agree to advance draft plastics treaty
    ESG: Seeking Alignment with Climate Change
    Sponsored Content: ESG: Seeking Alignment with Climate Change

    Reader Poll

    May 1, 2023
     
    SEE MORE POLLS >
    Sponsored
    White Papers
    Middle market credit: We’re gonna need a bigger boat
    Alternative Credit: Differences and Opportunities in CLOs and Credit Risk Shari…
    Fixed Income is Attractive, but Beware of "Fake" Yield
    Counting on a Crisis: A Catalyst for Investment Innovation?
    A Strategic Allocator's Guide to Productivity and Profits
    Research for Institutional Money Management
    View More
    Sponsored Content
    Partner Content
    The Industrialization of ESG Investment
    For institutional investors, ETFs can make meeting liquidity needs easier
    Gold: the most effective commodity investment
    2021 Investment Outlook | Investing Beyond the Pandemic: A Reset for Portfolios
    Ten ways retirement plan professionals add value to plan sponsors
    Gold: an efficient hedge
    View More
    E-MAIL NEWSLETTERS

    Sign up and get the best of News delivered straight to your email inbox, free of charge. Choose your news – we will deliver.

    Subscribe Today
    December 12, 2022 page one

    Get access to the news, research and analysis of events affecting the retirement and institutional money management businesses from a worldwide network of reporters and editors.

    Subscribe
    Connect With Us
    • RSS
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • LinkedIn

    Our Mission

    To consistently deliver news, research and analysis to the executives who manage the flow of funds in the institutional investment market.

    About Us

    Main Office
    685 Third Avenue
    Tenth Floor
    New York, NY 10017-4036

    Chicago Office
    130 E. Randolph St.
    Suite 3200
    Chicago, IL 60601

    Contact Us

    Careers at Crain

    About Pensions & Investments

     

    Advertising
    • Media Kit
    • P&I Content Solutions
    • P&I Careers | Post a Job
    • Reprints & Permissions
    Resources
    • Subscribe
    • Newsletters
    • FAQ
    • P&I Research Center
    • Site map
    • Staff Directory
    Legal
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Request
    Pensions & Investments
    Copyright © 1996-2023. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • Topics
      • Alternatives
      • Consultants
      • Courts
      • Defined Contribution
      • ESG
      • ETFs
      • Face to Face
      • Hedge Funds
      • Industry Voices
      • Investing
      • Money Management
      • Partner Content
      • Pension Funds
      • Private Equity
      • Real Estate
      • Regulation
      • SECURE 2.0
      • Special Reports
      • Washington
      • White Papers
    • Rankings & Awards
      • 1,000 Largest Retirement Plans
      • Top-Performing Managers
      • Largest Money Managers
      • DC Money Managers
      • DC Record Keepers
      • Largest Hedge Fund Managers
      • World's Largest Retirement Funds
      • Best Places to Work in Money Management
      • Excellence & Innovation Awards
      • WPS Innovation Awards
      • Eddy Awards
    • ETFs
      • Latest ETF News
      • Fund Screener
      • Education Center
      • Equities
      • Fixed Income
      • Commodities
      • Actively Managed
      • Alternatives
      • ESG Rated
    • ESG
      • Latest ESG News
      • The Institutional Investor’s Guide to ESG Investing
      • ESG Sustainability - Gaining Momentum
      • ESG Investing | Industry Brief
      • Innovation in ESG Investing
      • 2023 ESG Investing Conference
      • ESG Rated ETFs
    • Defined Contribution
      • Latest DC News
      • The Plan Sponsor's Guide to Retirement Income
      • DC Money Manager Rankings
      • DC Record Keeper Rankings
      • Innovations in DC
      • Trends in DC: Focus on Retirement Income
      • 2023 Defined Contribution East Conference
    • Searches & Hires
      • Latest Searches & Hires News
      • Searches & Hires Database
      • RFPs
    • Research Center
      • The P&I Research Center
      • Earnings Tracker
      • Endowment Returns Tracker
      • Corporate Pension Contribution Tracker
      • Pension Fund Returns Tracker
      • Pension Risk Transfer Database
    • Careers
    • Events
      • View All Conferences
      • View All Webinars
      • 2023 Canadian Pension Risk Strategies
      • 2023 Retirement Income