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UK Stewardship Code 2020

Model Portfolio Service

M&G Wealth Investments is not a signatory of the UK Stewardship Code. As M&G Wealth Investment’s model portfolio services do not invest directly in bonds and equities, the business does not directly undertake stewardship activities such as shareholder voting. However, M&G Wealth Investments is highly supportive of the UK Stewardship Code as a benchmark in the UK for asset managers to meet ownership responsibilities in respect of the holdings within collective funds they manage on behalf of clients.

The M&G Wealth Investments investment process uses the expertise of the M&G Treasury & Investment Office (T&IO) Manager Oversight Team for recommending the most suitable asset managers to achieve the intended outcomes for its model portfolio services. The M&G T&IO Manager Oversight Team performs robust investment due diligence on asset managers to assess their ability to provide the expected investment performance and, where applicable, positive ESG outcomes, which includes an assessment of the manager’s stewardship processes. Asset managers of the funds selected for the portfolios are expected to engage with companies as appropriate to help foster a more sustainable economy, mitigate potential ESG risks and participate in shareholder voting on key issues such as climate change. In addition, due diligence and ESG analysis is carried out by the T&IO on a regular basis for all funds within the model portfolios, to ensure the managers are fulfilling their expected stewardship responsibilities. M&G Wealth Investments believes that inclusion of stewardship factors in the investment process leads to selecting funds that can deliver strong outcomes for our clients and their underlying customer.