Fund Operator’s Post

A recent decision by the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to halt the development of a stewardship effectiveness KPI highlights the complexity of measuring the effectiveness of investor engagement. Isolating stewardship’s influence is challenging: that makes thoughtful metrics all the more essential. At rezonanz, we understand that stewardship is a collective action problem with concentrated costs and diffuse benefits. We view contribution as the first step towards understanding attribution. The challenges lie in investors efforts' interaction with social, legal, and market factors—but this is where our advanced analysis and data modeling excel. While no single metric fully captures stewardship’s impact, our Voting for Sustainability ranking is a step in the right direction. We’re confident that-in combination with our detailed analysis and innovative methods extending beyond proxy voting records-our ranking approach can yield actionable insights to drive accountability and impact. The complexity of this challenge energizes us. By focusing on measurable actions and continuously improving our methodological frameworks, we remain committed to driving transparency and real impact in sustainable investing. #SustainableInvesting #Stewardship #ESG #ProxyVoting #InvestmentImpact #votingForSustainability For more information on the FCA's decision see the Responsible Investor article by Dominic Webb here (paywalled): https://lnkd.in/g-NkVX3u

UK Stewardship Code 2020: Latest insights & upcoming review Our new blog unpacks the UK Stewardship Code 2020's latest signatory update and guidance. With the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) set to review the Code later this year, we delve into what this means for responsible investment and how SI Engage supports asset managers in excellence. What changes or improvements do you hope to see in the upcoming review? Share your thoughts! bit.ly/4a8mmqw #UKStewardshipCode #ResponsibleInvestment #AssetManagement #Finance

Please see attached a report from KPMG Ireland on emerging trends and future direction in Irish asset management. "At the national level, it is clear that the sector considers maintaining regulatory attractiveness to be by far its most important step to maintaining its growth trajectory." In conclusion the report states "Ireland’s asset management sector has emerged strongly from the pandemic but has no shortage of critical trends to contend with in the coming years, as inflation, fee compression, ESG and technological progress continue to make themselves felt. For Ireland to continue its impressive growth trajectory, it will need to respond to these pressures astutely." Simon O’Sullivan on behalf of the IFDA council _____________________ IFDA is the representative body for independent directors within the Irish funds industry. Contact us on secretary@ifdassoc.ie www.ifdassoc.ie Lisa Martensson Gerard Scully Jennifer Fox John Madigan Brian Farrell Jorge Fernandez Revilla #IFDA #Ireland #INED #ESMA #UCITS #AIFs #regulation #ESG #sustainability #KPMG #ireland

Carlota Esguevillas reflects on the strengths of the current UK Stewardship Code, and details what EdenTree Investment Management would like to see in its next iteration. https://lnkd.in/eT5vUtta Financial Reporting Council #Stewardship

In this latest article, James Hay and Elizabeth Budd compare notes with Neill Blanks, MD at MainStreet Partners, to discuss practical implications of the UK's Financial Conduct Authority's plans to extend sustainability disclosure requirements (SDR) to portfolio management services. Sustainability due diligence will become increasing integral for assessment of funds, if/when these extended SDR obligations become a regulatory requirement. https://lnkd.in/e66ixSUA #sustainabilityduediligence #antigreenwashing #portfoliomanagement

📝 In July, the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) published areas of focus and interim changes it will be making to the Stewardship Code, ahead of its consultation announced earlier this year. ⏰Since the Code's last update in 2019, the landscape for stewardship and reporting has evolved drastically - and so have investor needs and reporting obligations. 📣The proposed consultation presents investors with a chance to call for a balance between streamlined reporting, and ambitions for transparency and information flow which is integral to investors’ net zero stewardship efforts, including through ‘collaborative engagement’ and ‘escalation’. 🔎 Our Senior Net Zero Stewardship Specialist Laith A. Cahill takes a look at this announcement, the proposed changes and their implications for investors. Read more: https://lnkd.in/ghGqpwPC #stewardship #investors #netzero

The Luxembourg financial regulator, CSSF, has fined Aviva Investors €56,500 following an ESG-themed inspection. The fine was imposed due to inconsistencies between pre-contractual disclosures and actual investment processes. Key issues included breaches of self-established ESG screens and the inability to demonstrate effective targeting of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). These funds were disclosing as A8 under the SFDR. https://lnkd.in/ea6ZP5q7

We're pleased to release NZ's first annual stewardship review. Titled 'Investors Stepping Up', the review summarises the stewardship activity across NZ in 2023. A consistent theme throughout the review is that investors really are stepping up, increasingly recognising the role they have in supporting companies to navigate risks and opportunities in order to maximise long term value. At the same time, stewardship in NZ is still developing. The findings in this report set a benchmark to build from as investor stewardship continues to grow across NZ and the world. Thank you to the Code's Founding and general Signatories, the Governance Committee, the Centre for Sustainable Finance: Toitū Tahua, Responsible Investment Association Australasia (RIAA), and all of the other organisations we've partnered with to build investor stewardship across Aotearoa New Zealand. For more information, please see the full review here: https://lnkd.in/gNXYa433

Our thoughts on the new ESMA guidelines on the use of ESG and sustainability-related terms in fund names. The battle to soften the application of these Guidelines, particularly with respect to closed funds, may have been lost but some interesting questions remain, including with respect to their application to non-EU AIFMs.

Aviva Investors has been fined €56,500 by Luxembourg’s Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (CSSF) for “persistent breaches” of their internal governance framework concerning five sub-funds classified as Article 8 under the EU’s Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation. Author: Michael N. https://lnkd.in/eVpKSBRq Integrum ESG #Governance #EquityFund