Sustainability

Creating a sustainable future

While we continue to integrate ESG within all our propositions, our Planet+ range of funds is designed to deliver on our ambition to help fix the planet, one investment at a time.

The range includes our impact funds, sustainable funds and ESG+ funds. These funds will seek to deliver ESG, Sustainable or Impact objectives and outcomes in addition to their financial objectives. As a minimum, all funds in the Planet + range apply an agreed set of exclusions:

• companies involved in the controversial weapons industry
• companies deemed to be in breach of the United Nations Global Compact Principles on human rights, labour, the environment and anti-corruption
• companies involved in tobacco (production, trading and distribution)*
• adult entertainment (production and those deriving revenue from that business)*
• companies providing gambling services*

*Thresholds apply - max revenue of 5% from producers and max revenues of 10% from distributors

Active stewardship and ESG integration are fundamental pillars for all Planet+ strategies.

Impact funds

• Seek to deliver a dual objective: measurable positive impact alongside financial return
• Aim to invest in companies that deliver material, measurable positive societal impacts by addressing the world’s major social and environmental challenges, framed against the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). While we support the UN SDGs, we are not associated with the UN and our funds are not endorsed by them.
• Provide transparent impact reporting

Sustainable funds

One or more elements may apply:

• The investment universe is driven by sustainability considerations, which might include climate change mitigation, pollution prevention, sustainability solutions (environmental, social) and/or approaches that address one or more of the UN SDGs. While we support the UN SDGs, we are not associated with the UN and our funds are not endorsed by them.
• An investment approach that selects companies and issuers with strong ESG credentials.
• A clear ambition, supported by explicit targets, to drive sustainability across the portfolio.

ESG+ funds

• Apply a Positive ESG Tilt to companies/issuers with better ESG characteristics (i.e. excluding companies or issuers with poorer ESG characteristics, for example those that have high exposure to significant ESG risks and fail to manage such risks).