Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Co., Helsinki, allocated a combined €2.75 billion ($3 billion) to two new iShares ETFs managed by BlackRock, as the pension fund works to reduce the climate risks in its passive portfolio, confirmed Juha Venalainen, senior portfolio manager.
The new iShares ETF strategies track the MSCI Climate Action indexes.
Ilmarinen, which has €57.5 billion in assets, allocated €2 billion to iShares Climate Conscious & Transition MSCI USA ETF and €745 million to iShares MSCI Japan Climate Action ETF, both of which it helped to develop. Both strategies select companies based on their emission intensity, emission reduction targets, green business income and climate risk management.
"We believe that companies that reduce the climate impact of their operations or strive to benefit from the opportunities produced by the fight against climate change better than their competitors are better investment targets for long-term investors than their comparison group," Mr. Venalainen said in a news release.
Ilmarinen is targeting a carbon-neutral investment portfolio by the end of 2035. About 85%, or €5 billion, of Ilmarinen’s passive equity ETF investments are focused on climate.
