UKSIF News Archive
Aviva Investors to Sponsor National Ethical Investment Week
4 September 2009
Aviva Investors has today joined CCLA, The Co-operative Financial Services and Henderson New Star as a sponsor of the second National Ethical Investment Week (NEIW), to be held 8-14 November. NEIW is a cooperative campaign that brings together financial advisers, charities and trusts, financial organisations, faith groups, NGOS and community groups to ensure that everyone knows that they have green and ethical options for their investments.
Peter Michaelis, Head of SRI, Aviva Investors said: “Following the success of the first National Ethical Investment Week last year, Aviva Investors are proud to be sponsoring the event for a second year. As a committed advocate of sustainable and responsible investment, we welcome the opportunity to broaden the debate around green and ethical investing. The response to the event last year was extremely encouraging and has helped to push green and ethical products higher up the mainstream agenda – we look forward to building on that this year.”
UKSIF says ethical investors remaining loyal to their funds
10 August 2009
“Net sales of ethical funds open to investors looks positive for second quarter, continuing an unbroken track record since 1992.” says Penny Shepherd MBE, UKSIF Chief Executive. “Advisers need to look behind this quarter’s headline figures to get to the true story. Ethical investors have remained loyal to their funds.“
Leading ethical fund providers have reported positive news about their second quarter net sales to UKSIF, with many saying June figures were better than May.
According to the IMA, net sales of ethical funds turned negative in second quarter this year for the first time since 1992 but UKSIF says that this was due to a single fund closing close to the end of the quarter.
“IMA data would have shown positive net sales for the quarter if one fund had not returned assets to investors in June, according to our information from product providers. The closure caused an outflow that month after net inflows in both April and May.” Shepherd said.
Read more from the IMA on their latest quarterly statistics. See more UKSIF press releases.
UKSIF survey shows pension fund trustees lead progress on responsible investment
3 June 2009
The 2009 UKSIF “Responsible Business: Sustainable Pension” report released today shows clear and exciting evidence that a group of Responsible Investment (RI) champions is beginning to emerge among UK corporate pension funds. Trustee leadership is driving this change.
BT Pension Scheme retained its Platinum ranking in this second bi-annual survey, while The Barclays UK Retirement Fund, BP Pension Fund and HBOS Final Salary Pension Scheme all progressed to a Gold ranking from Silver. Three quarters of repeat respondents achieved a higher score this year than in 2007.
The survey found that trustees of three quarters of surveyed funds now believe that ESG (environmental, social, governance) factors can have a material impact on the fund’s investments in the long term. Two thirds of trustees thought it was important to align the plan’s RI policy with the fund sponsor’s CSR policies.
Read the full press release (PDF, 65KB). Find out more about the survey and the Sustainable Pensions Project.
IMA stats show fourteen months of positive inflows into green and ethical funds
7 May 2009
UKSIF has commented on the Investment Management Association’s statistics on ethical funds for first quarter 2009 which have been published today.
Penny Shepherd MBE, UKSIF Chief Executive, said:
“These latest numbers add even more weight to the argument that green and ethical investors are ‘sticky’. They are typically long-term investors who look beyond short-term market fluctuations and want to benefit from sustainable wealth creation. Retail inflows into ethical funds have now exceeded outflows for each of the fourteen months since February 2008.”
Investors call for 'green' focus in economic recovery measures
1 April 2009
A group of major investors, representing over £400 bn(1) in funds under management, has today written to the UK Prime Minister, as Chair of this week’s London Summit, supporting a strong ‘green’ element in programmes of fiscal stimulus undertaken by governments.
The investors’ intervention follows President Obama’s announcement of a stimulus package containing major investments in low-carbon energy and energy efficiency and echoes calls for ‘green new deal’ by others such as the UN’s Environment Programme and Lord Stern, the former head of the UK Government Economics Service.
Paul Abberley, Chief Executive, Aviva Investors London, one of the ten senior executives signing the letter, said: “Green investment isn’t only for governments. Many private investors also want the opportunity to invest in green projects such as low-carbon energy and energy efficiency. This requires the right kind of policies and appropriate financial instruments. We are keen to keep talking to governments about how private sector investment can be mobilised to help make the recovery from this economic crisis a sustainable one.“
The initiative was convened by UKSIF, the sustainable investment and finance association, and the UK-based business-led think tank, Tomorrow’s Company.
(1) As of December 31st 2008
Read the full press release (PDF, 97.4KB). Read the investor letter (PDF, 91.2KB). For more information, see our Finance for a Sustainable Recovery blog.
Dysfunctional investment practices are hampering sustainable recovery, says UKSIF
22 July 2009
Regulatory and cultural changes could allow the investment sector to accelerate the transition to a sustainable economy, says UKSIF Chief Executive Penny Shepherd, in a chapter published last week as part of the report “From Crisis to Recovery” by “Think Tank of the Year” Green Alliance. Shepherd’s policy proposals appear alongside recommendations from seven other leading commentators on how to transform the economy in the wake of the downturn.
Read the full Press Release, or see our blog entry on the report.
UKSIF joins with global partners to demand green action from G20
1 April 2009
UKSIF, the sustainable investment and finance association, has joined with its sister organisations across the globe to send a message to world leaders meeting in London tomorrow to address the global financial and economic crisis
.In their statement “Transforming global capital markets”, the six-strong network of global sustainable and responsible finance organisations says:
“The current economic crisis affords a unique opportunity and imperative to transition to a low-carbon, resource efficient and socially sustainable economy.
As the umbrella organizations for the sustainable and responsible finance industry worldwide, we call on world leaders to respond to this challenge by incorporating sustainability and social responsibility measures into both the economic stimulus packages for short-term recovery and the longer-term reform of the credit and investment markets.”
The statement outlines the measures proposed. These include (a) financial instruments and incentives to building the green economy using private investment alongside direct government support and (b) financial reform measures to require greater transparency and facilitate responsible ownership.
Read the full press release (PDF, 17KB). See also the global sustainable and responsible finance organisations' joint statement (PDF, 336KB ).
CCLA, The Co-operative Financial Services, and Henderson Global Investors to Sponsor Second National Ethical Investment Week
CCLA, The Co-operative Financial Services and Henderson Global Investors will be the sponsors of the second National Ethical Investment Week (NEIW), it has been announced today. NEIW 2009 will be held 8-14 November, and is organised by UKSIF, the sustainable investment and finance association. UKSIF has also launched a new website at www.neiw.org to help financial advisers, charities and financial services organisations who want to get involved in NEIW 2009.
The second National Ethical Investment Week will build on the strength of last year’s week, which saw over 100 organisations, including financial services firms, financial advisers, NGOs and charities voice their support for green and ethical investment.
Read the full press release (PDF, 183KB). Find out more about National Ethical Investment Week.
IMA Ethical Statistics Show Ethical Investors are ‘Sticky’ says UKSIF
6 February 2009
Penny Shepherd MBE, UKSIF Chief Executive, said:
“Green and ethical investors take a long term perspective even in difficult markets. Ethical funds saw retail inflows exceeding outflows every month since last February in spite of the turmoil of 2008. Our members confirm that investors continue to support ethical funds.”
Capital Markets for a Sustainable Recovery: UKSIF launches online support for the debate
3 March 2009
UKSIF has launched its Sustainable Capital Markets Library to support the growing debate on how to build a robust operating framework for sustainable investment and finance. The launch comes in the run-up to the London Summit on the global economic crisis on 2 April.
This free library will assist policy makers, the finance industry and all who influence or study the changing nature of the capital markets by bringing together key documents on the impact of capital market structures and incentives on long-term responsible investment within the UK and worldwide. It has been developed with support from Aviva Investors.
UKSIF has also launched today online support for the growing number of industry roundtables and meetings about sustainable capital markets. Its Sustainable Recovery discussion log will enable easy access to the analyses and recommendations of sustainable finance practitioners.
Read the Full Press Release (PDF, 45.4KB). Learn more about our Public Policy work.
Survey Launched to Shed Light on Responsible Investment Policies of UK Corporate Pension Funds
UKSIF has today launched the 2009 “Responsible Business: Sustainable Pension” survey looking at the Responsible Investment policies of UK Corporate Pension Funds. Pension funds are being invited to participate based on their plan sponsor’s reputation as a Corporate Responsibility leader.
Sponsored by leading investment managers Hermes Fund Managers and KBC Asset Management, this is the second bi-annual survey of the pension funds of companies highly regarded for their Corporate Responsibility. The survey was developed by independent pension fund industry leaders to give an RI framework specifically tailored to the needs of this group.
The inaugural survey in 2007 found that nearly two thirds of funds gave “great” or “some” significance to alignment with their plan sponsor’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and/or Sustainability policy. The 2009 results will be published later in the year.
Read the full press release (PDF, 81.1KB). Learn more about the Sustainable Pensions Project.
Renewed Drive for Sustainable Investment and Finance
Underlined by UKSIF Name Change
19 January 2009
UKSIF, the membership association that promotes sustainable and responsible financial services, has changed its name to better reflect its aim of advancing sustainable investment and finance. At the same time, it has launched a renewed drive for sustainable investment and finance so that today's credit crisis does not become tomorrow's even more damaging climate and resources crisis.
UKSIF is the only UK association with the specific aim of advancing sustainable development through financial services. it will be known in future as "UKSIF - the sustainable investment and finance association". Its name has been changed legally to "UK Sustainable Investment and Finance" to keep the familiar acronym unchanged.
A new logo and website are being launched to support the change.
Read the full Press Release (PDF, KB)
Matthew Taylor delivers UKSIF Annual Lecture
06 November 2008
In his Lecture, Matthew Taylor chief executive of the RSA emphasised the need for greater citizen engagement as a key part of solving the current financial crisis. He also discussed the RSA's Tomorrow's Investor project.
The Annual Lecture was followed by the presentation of the results and awards of the Thomson Reuters Extel SRI/Sustainability Survey 2008 (in association with UKSIF).
The Annual Lecture was preceeded by the UKSIF AGM. At the AGM, four new directors were elected onto the UKSIF Board: Ed Blamey (Jupiter Asset Management), Aled Jones (Pension Protection Fund), My-Linh Ngo (Henderson Global Investors), Helen Wildsmith (CCLA Investment Management). [Note: Board members serve in a personal capacity. Organisation affiliation is for information only]
The AGM also marked the retirement of the following directors: Mark Camapanale, Lee Coates, Rod Schwartz and Meagan Thompson-Mann.
Press Release: Citizen Engagement is Key to Financial Reform
Copy of Matthew Taylor's Lecture
Press Release: Results of Extel SRI/Sustainability Survey 2008