On September 30, 2019 The Asset reported that “HSBC Global Asset Management (HSBC GAM) is currently fundraising for an emerging market green impact bond fund that it hopes to raise a total of US$750 million for by the end of November. This fund already has the International Finance Corp (IFC) as one of its anchor investors.
Previously, HSBC GAM had launched a low carbon bond fund in September 2017 that raised US$230 million in assets under management (AUM). This core global credit fund aims to create a portfolio that has a lower carbon footprint than its reference benchmark Bloomberg Barclays Global Aggregate Corporates Diversified Index Hedged USD.
‘Fundamentally what ESG is all about is thinking more broadly about the issues that a company has to deal with in its everyday business. We are doing two things. One is we identify these issues, find out if they are material, and whether we bring them into the investment process. We ask if the fund manager is making a better-informed decision and is aware of these ESG issues. And then the second thing we do is we offer specific solutions,’ says Sandra Carlisle, head of responsible investment at HSBC GAM.
HSBC GAM recently received an A-plus rating in almost all relevant areas from the Principle of Responsible Investing (PRI), the international network of ESG investors supported by the United Nations. The A-plus rating corresponds to a top quartile ranking. This is considered a significant achievement particularly in fixed income, where less than 10% of asset managers are awarded A+ rating.”
You may read the article on The Asset ESG Forum internet site.