Growing interest in SRI see Mercer mandate Acadian
Increased demand for responsible investment options has seen Mercer award Acadian Asset Management with a mandate to run its Australian Equities Socially Responsible Investment (SRI) fund.
The United Nations Principle for Responsible Investment (UNPRI) signatory secured the mandate for the fund last week.
Acadian chief executive, Andrew Hair, said the fund manager targeted a reduced level of carbon emissions below that of the broad Australian equity index (ASX300), while also adopting screens to exclude business activities that fail to meet the criteria of socially responsible investors.
"We are working in a consultative partnership with Mercer and are pleased to have the opportunity to develop another portfolio around their goals," he said.
"This year, we were pleased to receive an ‘A' from the UNPRI on our overarching approach to responsible investments as well as an ‘A' on our approach to Integration.
"Our flexible portfolio construction process lends itself to such tailoring and we are excited to be able to provide such an innovative solution to our clients."
The announcement followed Acadian announcing that it had been awarded an Australian Equities Small Cap mandate by IOOF Investments, as part of IOOF's MySuper option.
Recommended for you
VanEck is expanding its fixed income range with a new ETF this week to complement its existing subordinated debt strategy which has received $1 billion in inflows this year.
Specialist global equities manager Nanuk has celebrated 10 years of its flagship New World Fund and is actively considering its next possible vehicle.
Australian equities manager Datt Capital has built a retail-friendly version of its small-cap strategy for advisers, previously only available for wholesale investors.
The dominance of passive funds is having a knock-on effect on Australia’s M&A environment by creating a less responsive shareholder base, according to law firm Minter Ellison.
