Stewart Investors Indian Subcontinent All Cap Fund

SRI Style:

Sustainable Style

SDR Labelling:

Unlabelled with sustainable characteristics

Product:

OEIC

Fund Region:

Indian Sub-continent

Fund Asset Type:

Equity

Launch Date:

15/11/2006

Last Amended:

Dialshifter ():

Fund Size:

£512.00m

(as at: 31/03/2023)

Total Screened Themed SRI Assets:

£14550.00m

Total Responsible Ownership Assets:

£14550.00m

Total Assets Under Management:

£14550.00m

ISIN:

GB00B1FXTG93, GB00B1FXTF86, GB00B2PF5X11, GB00B8N1MB01, GB00B84RNC52

Objectives:

The Fund aims to achieve capital growth over the long-term (at least five years).

 

Sustainable, Responsible
&/or ESG Overview:

The Fund aims to achieve absolute returns over the long-term by making investments into high-quality companies that contribute to, and benefit from, sustainable development. The team achieves positive social and environmental outcomes by avoiding companies that participate in harmful and controversial practices and investing in, and engaging with, companies that directly or indirectly support positive social and environmental outcomes such as health and wellbeing, financial inclusion, waste, water and energy efficiency and renewable energy. Engagement and voting are used as tools to improve the underlying companies’ approaches to social and environmental issues. The team uses Project Drawdown to map the portfolio to climate change and biodiversity solutions and Human Development Pillars to map to social factors like health and wellbeing, financial inclusion and water and sanitation. All holdings are also mapped to the Sustainable Development Goals.

Primary fund last amended:


Information directly from fund manager.

Fund Filters

Sustainability - General
Sustainability policy

Funds that have policies that consider (environmental and social) sustainability issues. Strategies vary but are likely to consider environmental issues like climate change, carbon emissions, biodiversity loss, resource management, environmental impacts; and social issues like equal opportunities, human rights, labour standards, diversity and adherence to internationally recognised codes. See fund information.

Sustainability focus

Find funds which substantially focus on sustainability issues

Sustainability theme or focus

Find funds where there is a significant emphasis on (environmental and social) sustainability. Funds with a 'sustainability theme' typically place more emphasis on the area than funds with a 'sustainability policy' - meaning that it is more likely to drive investment selection. Strategies vary. See fund information for further detail.

Encourage more sustainable practices through stewardship

A core element of these funds aim to encourage higher sustainability standards across business practices through responsible ownership / stewardship / engagement / voting activity

UN Global Compact linked exclusion policy

Find funds that use the UN Global Compact to inform or help direct where they can or cannot invest and will typically not invest in companies with significant breaches (low standards) - although strategies vary. (The UNGC covers a wide range of issues - search 'UNGC'). See https://unglobalcompact.org/

Report against sustainability objectives

Find funds that publicly report their performance against specifically named sustainability objectives (in addition to reporting their financial performance)

Environmental - General
Environmental policy

Funds that have policies which relate to environmental issues. These will typically set out the fund's stance on issues such as pollution, climate change, resource management, biodiversity loss, carbon emissions, plastics and/or additional environmental impacts. Strategies vary. See fund information for further information.

Limits exposure to carbon intensive industries

Funds that limit or 'reduce' their exposure to carbon intensive industries (ie sectors which are major contributors to climate change. Funds vary - some funds may be 'underweight' in this area which means they may have some investment in highly carbon intensive areas. Funds of this kind may choose companies they consider to be 'best in sector' and encourage ever higher standards. Strategies vary. See fund information for further details.

Climate Change & Energy
Climate change / greenhouse gas emissions policy

Funds that have policies (documented strategies that explain their position on) climate change related issues such as greenhouse gas/carbon emissions, net zero, transitioning to lower carbon. Strategies vary. Read fund details for further information.

Coal, oil & / or gas majors excluded

Funds that avoid investing in major coal, oil and/or gas (extraction) companies. Funds vary: some may exclude all companies that extract oil. Others may have exposure to oil extraction via more diversified energy companies. See fund literature to confirm details.

Fracking and tar sands excluded

Funds that avoid companies involved in fracking and tar sands - which are widely regarded as controversial methods of oil and gas extraction. Strategies vary. See fund information for further information.

Arctic drilling exclusion

Funds that avoid companies that are involved in extracting oil from the Arctic regions. See fund literature for further details.

Fossil fuel reserves exclusion

Funds that avoid investing in companies with coal, oil and gas reserves. See fund information for further details.

Encourage transition to low carbon through stewardship activity

A core element of these funds will aim to encourage the transition to lower carbon activities through responsible ownership / stewardship / engagement / voting activity

Invests in clean energy / renewables

Funds that hold companies in the clean energy and renewable energy sectors (at the time research was supplied). Fund strategies vary, in particular the proportion of investment in these areas may vary significantly. Check fund literature for details.

Nuclear exclusion policy

Find funds that have policies which say they avoid or limit their investment in the nuclear industry. Strategies vary. See fund information for further detail.

Fossil fuel exploration exclusion - direct involvement

The fund manager excludes companies with direct involvement in fossil fuel exploration (eg coal, oil and gas companies)

Fossil fuel exploration exclusion – indirect involvement

The fund manager excludes companies with indirect involvement in fossil fuel exploration. For example they would be expected to exclude banks and insurance companies that are effectively enabling new coal, oil and or gas reserves to be discovered and in due course extracted through the provision of necessary finance or services.

Social / Employment
Labour standards policy

Find funds that have a labour standards policy - which can be expected to mean that the fund will invest in / favour companies that have higher standards in this area - although fund strategies can vary significantly (as with all policy areas). See eg https://www.ilo.org/international-labour-standards

Ethical Values Led Exclusions
Ethical policies

Find funds that have policies that set out their position on ethical or 'personal values' based issues. Strategies vary. See fund information for further detail.

Tobacco and related product manufacturers excluded

Companies are excluded if they are involved in any aspect of the production chain for tobacco products, including cigarettes, vaping, e-cigarettes, chewing tobacco and cigars.

Armaments manufacturers avoided

Find funds that avoid companies that manufacture products intended specifically for military use. Fund strategies vary - particularly with regard to non-strategic military products. See fund literature for fund specific details.

Civilian firearms production exclusion

Find funds with a written civilian firearms exclusion policy - meaning that they will not invest in companies that make (or perhaps also sell) handguns made for non-military users.

Alcohol production excluded

Find funds that avoid investment in companies involved in the production of alcohol. Strategies vary; some funds allow a small proportion of profits to come from this area. See fund literature for further information.

Gambling avoidance policy

Find funds that avoid companies with significant involvement in the gambling industry. Some funds may allow a small proportion of profits to come from this area. See fund policy for further details.

Pornography avoidance policy

Find funds that avoid companies that derive significant income from pornography and related areas. Strategies vary. See fund details for further information.

Animal welfare policy

Find funds with policies that require specific animal welfare standards to be met. These may reference well-known welfare standards (3Rs - Replace, Reduce, Refine) or certification schemes. Strategies vary. See fund information for further detail.

Animal testing - excluded except if for medical purposes

Find funds that avoid companies that test their products on animals for purposes other than medical benefit (e.g. for cosmetics). Strategies vary. See fund literature for further information.

Human Rights
Human rights policy

Find funds that have policies relating to human rights issues. Funds of this kind typically require companies to demonstrate higher standards, although some fund managers work to encourage improvements. Investee companies are often judged against internationally agreed norms or standards. Strategies vary. See fund information for further detail.

Child labour exclusion

Find funds that have policies in place to ensure they do not invest in companies that employ children.

Oppressive regimes (not free or democratic) exclusion policy

Find funds with policies that exclude companies or other assets where regimes are not democratic, or where people may be oppressed. May use eg. Freedom House research. Strategies vary. See fund literature for further information.

Responsible supply chain policy or theme

Find funds that have policies or a theme that relates to the responsible management of supply chains. These may relate to employment issues, notably people employed by their suppliers, as well as the sourcing of materials and products. See fund literature for further information.

Modern slavery exclusion policy

The fund has a policy which excludes assets with involvement in Modern Slavery

LGBTQ+ policy

The fund has a policy which sets out its position on LGBTQ+ related social issues and their expectations of investee assets - typically meaning they won't invest in companies with poor standards. See fund information.

Banking & Financials
Predatory lending exclusion

Fund excludes financial services companies with widely criticised, aggressive lending practices where interest rates are typically very high, includes ‘doorstep lending’)

Governance & Management
Governance policy

Find fund options that have policies that relate to corporate governance issues such as board structure, executive remuneration, bribery and/or corporate corruption. These funds will typically avoid companies with poor practices. Strategies vary. See fund literature for further information.

Avoids companies with poor governance

Find funds that aim to avoid investing in companies with poor governance practices.(e.g. board structure, management practices etc.) Views may however vary on what counts as 'poor' practices - and funds may not immediately divest as they may prefer to work to encourage higher standards. See fund literature for further information.

UN sanctions exclusion

Exclude companies that are subject to United Nations sanctions. See eg https://main.un.org/securitycouncil/en/content/un-sc-consolidated-list

Anti-bribery and corruption policy

Find funds that have policies explaining how managers will respond to assets / companies that do not comply with relevant anti-bribery and anti-corruption standards or laws. Strategies vary; options include stewardship/ engagement and divestment - or a combination. See fund literature for further information.

Digital / cyber security policy

Find funds that have policies explaining how the fund managers take into account digital/cyber security related risks. Funds with cyber policies will typically favour companies with higher standards or that are helping to solve problems - but strategies vary. See fund literature for further information.

Encourage board diversity e.g. gender

Fund managers encourage the companies they invest in to have more diverse board structures (e.g. more women on boards)

Encourage higher ESG standards through stewardship activity

A core element of these funds will aim to encourage higher ESG standards through responsible ownership / stewardship / engagement /voting activity

Fund Governance
ESG integration strategy

Find funds that factor in 'environmental, social and governance' issues as part of their investment decision making process. A focus on 'ESG' typically means a fund is carrying out additional research to help reduce ESG related risks. It does not necessarily mean a focus on sustainability. Strategies vary. See fund literature.

ESG factors included in Assessment of Value (AoV) report

Environmental, social and governance issues are part of this fund’s reporting of their ‘value’ to clients. AoV reporting is a statutory requirement. Including ESG factors in its calculation is not.

Asset Size
Over 50% small / mid cap companies

Find funds where more than half of the funds' assets are invested in smaller or medium sized companies (i.e. below around £5 -10 billion).

Invests in small, mid and large cap companies / assets

Find a fund that invests in a combination of small, medium and larger (potentially multinational)companies.

Impact Methodologies
Aims to generate positive impacts (or 'outcomes')

Funds that aim to help or support the delivery of positive social or environmental impacts (or societal/real world outcomes) by investing in companies they regard as beneficial to people and / or the planet. Strategies vary. See fund literature for further information.

Measures positive impacts

Funds that aim to measure the positive real world environmental and / or social benefits that are associated with their investment strategy. Funds that aim to deliver positive impacts and measure those impacts may be referred to as 'impact funds' - although impact measurement is not restricted to impact funds. Strategies vary. See fund information.

Positive environmental impact theme

Find funds that specifically set out to help deliver positive environmental impacts, benefits or 'real world' outcomes.

Positive social impact theme

Find funds that specifically state that they aim to deliver positive social (i.e. people related) impacts and/or outcomes.

Invests in environmental solutions companies

Find funds that direct investment towards companies where a major part of their business is about solving environmental challenges. e.g. companies helping to address climate change.

Invests in social solutions companies

Find funds that invest in companies where a major part of their business is specifically aimed at helping to address social challenges. e.g. companies helping to address poverty.

Aim to deliver positive impacts through engagement

Fund aims to deliver positive environmental and or social impacts (real world benefits) through its engagement with investee assets

How The Fund Works
Significant harm exclusion

Aims to avoid companies that do significant harm. This originates from the EU’s sustainable finance ‘DNSH’ (do no significant harm) work, which is not necessarily used by UK investors.

Assets mapped to SDGs

Find funds that have 'mapped' (reviewed) their investment selection and management strategies to identify which of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) the fund is helping to address.

Combines norms based exclusions with other SRI criteria

Find funds that make significant use of internationally agreed 'norms' (e.g. United Nations Global Compact - UNGC - or the UN Sustainable Development Goals - SDGs) as part of their investment selection process alongside additional SRI criteria such as positive or negative stock selection policies and/or stewardship strategies.

Focus on ESG risk mitigation

A major focus of these funds is the careful management of environmental, social and governance (ESG) related risks - typically by avoiding or being underweight in companies seen as posing major risks in these areas (i.e. not necessarily by using themes, exclusions etc).

SRI / ESG / Ethical policies explained on website

Find funds that have published explanations of their ethical, social and/or environmental policies online (i.e. fund decision making strategies/ buy/sell &/or asset management strategies).

Unscreened Assets & Cash
All assets (except cash) meet published sustainability criteria

All assets held in the fund - except cash - meet the sustainability criteria published in fund documentation.

Intended Clients & Product Options
Intended for investors interested in sustainability

Finds funds designed to meet the needs of individual investors with an interest in sustainability issues.

Intended for clients who want to have a positive impact

Finds funds designed to meet the needs of individual investors with an interest in ‘Impact investment funds’ which help or support the delivery of positive social or environmental impacts (or societal/real world outcomes) by investing in companies they regard as beneficial to people and / or the planet. Strategies vary. See fund literature for further information.

Available via an ISA (OEIC only)

Find funds that are available via a tax efficient ISA product wrapper.

Labels & Accreditations
RSMR rated

Find funds that are rated by research agency 'Rayner Spencer Mills Research' (awarded 'RSMR Rated' status). Read fund literature or contact RSMR for further information.

Fund Management Company Information

About The Business
Boutique / specialist fund management company

Find fund management companies that are smaller or specialise in particular areas - notably, ideally ESG related. Strategies vary.

Responsible ownership / stewardship policy or strategy (AFM company wide)

Finds fund management companies that have a published company wide stewardship, engagement and / or responsible ownership policy or strategy that covers all investments. Stewardship typically involves encouraging higher ESG standards through voting and dialogue.

ESG / SRI engagement (AFM company wide)

Find fund management companies that actively encourage higher 'environmental, social and governance' and/or 'sustainable and responsible investment' practices across investee companies - typically where the aim is to encourage positive change that is aligned with the best interests of investors. Strategies vary. See additional information and options.

Vote all* shares at AGMs / EGMs (AFM company wide)

Find fund managers that vote all* the shares they own at Annual General Meetings and Extraordinary General Meetings. A commitment to voting shares is a key indicator of 'responsible share ownership' demonstrating their support for or disagreement with management policy. (*situations can legitimately, occasionally occur where voting proves impossible, but in principle all shares should be voted.)

Responsible ownership / ESG a key differentiator (AFM company wide)

Find fund managers that consider responsible ownership and ESG to be a key differentiator for their business.

Integrates ESG factors into all / most (AFM) fund research

Find fund management companies that consider environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues when deciding whether or not to invest in a company for all / almost all of their funds and other assets. This is increasingly seen as part of sound risk management.

In-house diversity improvement programme (AFM company wide)

Finds organisations / fund managers that have an in-house (company wide) diversity improvement programme - meaning that they are working to ensure that within their own businesses they employ people from diverse backgrounds - often typically focused on ethnicity and/or sex.

Diversity, equality & inclusion engagement policy (AFM company wide)

Find fund management companies that encourage the companies they invest in to have strong diversity, race, gender and other equality policies across all assets held, not simply screened or themed SRI/ESG funds. (ie Asset Management company wide).

Collaborations & Affiliations
PRI signatory

Find fund management companies that have signed up to the UN backed 'Principles of Responsible Investment'.

UKSIF member

Find fund management companies that are members of UKSIF - the UK Sustainable Investment and Finance association

Fund EcoMarket partner

Find fund management companies that have partnered with Fund EcoMarket - meaning that they are helping to improve access to information on sustainable and responsible investment by paying an annual fee to us which enables us to publish information for free. Partner funds are listed ahead of other funds and have their logos displayed.

Investment Association (IA) member

Fund management entity is a member of the Investment Association https://www.theia.org/

Resources
In-house responsible ownership / voting expertise

Find fund management companies that employ people to steer and support fund managers in voting shares at company AGM's and EGMs in ways that are consistent with encouraging higher ESG/sustainability standards.

Employ specialist ESG / SRI / sustainability researchers

Find a fund management company that directly employs specialist ESG/SRI/sustainability researchers or analysts. This allows asset managers to discuss environmental, social and governance risks and opportunities directly with companies.

Use specialist ESG / SRI / sustainability research companies

Find fund management companies that makes use of expert external research companies. This can help deliver specialist expertise and means resources are pooled with other investors.

ESG specialists on all investment desks (AFM company wide)

Finds organisations / fund managers that have one or more ESG/sustainability experts on all investment teams or 'desks' (all asset types)

Accreditations
B Corp certified (AFM company wide)

Fund manager has achieved accreditation which requires them to articulate their purpose and have high environmental and social standards.

PRI A+ rated (AFM company wide)

Finds organisations / fund managers that have an A+ PRI rating - meaning they are highly rated according to the 'Principles of Responsible Investment'

UK Stewardship Code signatory (AFM company wide)

Find fund managers that are signatories to the FRC UK Stewardship Code, which sets out a framework for constructive investor / investee relations where fund managers are encouraged to behave like responsible, typically longer term 'company owners'.

Engagement Approach
Regularly lead collaborative ESG initiatives (AFM company wide)

Find fund management companies that regularly initiate or run industry wide (collaborative) investor projects aimed at raising environmental, social and governance standards amongst investee companies.

Encourage responsible corporate taxation (AFM company wide)

Find fund management companies that are working with the companies they invest in to encourage more responsible corporate taxation.

Engaging on climate change issues

Fund manager has stewardship /responsible ownership strategy that is focused on addressing climate change with investee assets.

Engaging to reduce plastics pollution / waste

Asset manager has stewardship /responsible ownership strategy with involves encouraging investee asset to reduce plastic waste and pollution.

Engaging on biodiversity / nature issues

The asset manager has a responsible ownership / stewardship strategy that focuses on biodiversity and nature issues relating to the assets they invest the aim of which will be to reduce harm and or deliver improvement. Strategies vary. https://tnfd.global

Engaging on human rights issues

Asset manager has responsible ownership / stewardship strategy in place which aims to address human rights issues in investee companies (and potentially their suppliers) with the aim of raising standards

Engaging on labour / employment issues

Asset manager has responsible ownership / stewardship strategy in place that aims to improve labour standards for the benefit of employees in investee companies (and potentially their suppliers)

Engaging on diversity, equality and / or inclusion issues

Asset management company has a stewardship strategy in place which involves working to raise diversity, equality and inclusion standards across investee assets

Engaging on governance issues

Fund managers have stewardship strategies in place that focus on improving governance standards across investee assets

Engaging on responsible supply chain issues

Has a stewardship / responsible ownership strategy that encourages responsible supply chain - ie the managers will discuss environmental, social and governance issues with investee companies with the aim of raising standards

Company Wide Exclusions
Controversial weapons avoidance policy (AFM company wide)

Find fund management companies (not funds) that avoid investment in 'controversial weapons' across all of their funds and other investment vehicles.

Tobacco avoidance policy (AFM company wide)

Find fund management companies that avoid investment in tobacco (manufacturing) companies across all their assets.

Fossil fuel exclusion policy (AFM company wide)

Find fund management companies that avoid investment in fossil fuel companies (e.g. coal, oil and gas) across all of their funds. (and/ or other assets.)

Review(ing) carbon / fossil fuel exposure for all funds (AFM company wide)

Find funds / fund managers that are reviewing, or have reviewed, their exposure to carbon intensive industries including (but not only) mining, oil and gas companies. (Typically with reference to climate change.)

Coal exclusion policy (group wide coal mining exclusion policy)

This asset manager excludes direct investment in the coal mining industry. Managers ability to do this may depend on the geographic regions in which they invest.

Do not invest in companies with fossil fuel reserves

Asset management company excludes companies with fossil fuel reserves across all assets/funds

Climate & Net Zero Transition
Net Zero commitment (AFM company wide)

Fund management organisations that have pledged to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions to ‘net zero’. Strategies vary - this area is changing rapidly.

Net Zero - have set a Net Zero target date (AFM company wide)

This asset management company has set a date by which they plan to achieve net zero greenhouse gas / CO2e emissions.

Encourage carbon / greenhouse gas reduction (AFM company wide)

Find fund management companies that are working with the companies they invest in to encourage reductions in carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions.

Carbon offsetting - offset carbon as part of our net zero plan (AFM company wide)

This asset management company plans to achieve net zero greenhouse gas (CO2e) emissions with the help of a scheme that will lock away an amount of carbon that is equivalent to the company’s own emissions – so that the end result is ‘net zero’. Calculations and scope vary.

In-house carbon / GHG reduction policy (AFM company wide)

Find fund management companies that are working to reduce their own (fund management company) carbon/greenhouse gas emissions.

Working towards a ‘Net Zero’ commitment (AFM company wide)

Finds organisations / fund management companies that are in the process of working out how to make a ‘net zero commitment’ - meaning that when that is finalised they will have started the process of reducing their total greenhouse gas emissions to'zero'.

Transparency
Publish responsible ownership / stewardship report (AFM company wide)

Find fund management companies that publish a report detailing their responsible investment ownership - also known as 'Stewardship' - activity.

Full SRI / responsible ownership policy information on company website

Find companies that publish information about their sustainable and responsible investment strategies on their company website.

Publish full voting record (AFM company wide)

Fund management companies that publish a full record of how they vote their shares at AGMs (annual general meetings) and EGMs (extraordinary general meetings). Voting strategies have an important role to play encouraging higher environmental, social and governance standards.

Net Zero transition plan publicly available (AFM company wide)

This asset management company has published a plan that explains how they are going to achieve net zero greenhouse gas / CO2e emissions.

Dialshifter statement

Find fund management companies that have supplied Dialshifter information. See Dialshifter tab within record for more information.

Sustainable, Responsible &/or ESG Policy:

The Stewart Investors investment team only invests in high-quality companies that are well positioned to both contribute to, and benefit from, sustainable development. This means that companies with material exposure to harmful or controversial products and services are naturally avoided. Investing in companies that fail to discharge their environmental stewardship and human rights responsibilities is also inconsistent with the team investment philosophy. 

 

All harmful business activities are defined and publicly disclosed on our website. We have established a materiality threshold for harmful or controversial activities at 5% of revenues – 0% threshold for manufacture of tobacco products and controversial weapons. In exceptional circumstances, we may invest in companies where the exposure is above the 5% threshold. In these cases there will be full disclosure on the rationale for investment. The reasons might include indirect involvement, for example, providing safety products to the fossil fuel or defence industry. Exceptions may also relate to legacy activities which are being wound down. In these cases the analysts will engage with the company and encourage them to exit those activities. There is also a group-wide policy prohibiting investments that do not adhere to international conventions, including cluster munitions, land mine manufacturers, sanctioned and high-risk countries and tobacco manufacturers.

 

The investment team screens the portfolios quarterly using Sustainalytics to ensure that each company held continues to meet the global norms for best business practices and is not breaching the list of harmful or controversial products and services. Checks are also completed pre and post-trade using the order management system, these include breaches of the UN Human Rights Norms for Businesses and the UN Global Compact Principles. The team receives controversy reporting from RepRisk on all shortlisted and held companies. Where issues are flagged by these services, the analysts will investigate the controversy and, if genuine, will engage with the company to improve practices. If the engagement is unsuccessful the team will divest.

 

We aim to create positive environmental and social outcomes across a broad range of factors by avoiding companies that are directly involved in harmful and controversial products and services and investing in companies that contribute to, and benefit from, sustainable development. Companies are selected from the bottom-up and have exposure to a broad range of themes including climate action, renewable energy, energy, waste and water efficiency, health and wellbeing, financial inclusion, education and employment, fair wages, sanitation, diversity, equity and inclusion.

 

Stewardship, engagement and voting, is also used to improve outcomes. Recent engagement topics have included climate change, remuneration, gender diversity, sustainability of soy and palm oil, lead and VOC levels in paint, living wage, recycling and packaging, plastic pellets and deforestation.

Process:

Sustainability is core to our investment philosophy and integrated into our investment process. We do not have a separate team that looks at sustainability – every investment team member analyses the sustainability positioning of a business, and is also responsible for engaging with companies.

 

We only invest in high-quality companies that contribute to, and benefit from, sustainable development. We define development as sustainable if it furthers human development and has an ecological footprint that respects planetary boundaries. All members of the investment team sign our Hippocratic Oath, pledging to uphold the principles of stewardship.

 

We approach sustainability as a means to mitigate risks and as a driver of investment returns. Integrating sustainability into our analysis is a natural extension of having a long-term investment horizon; the sustainability headwinds and tailwinds that affect companies are different to the shorter-term risks that businesses face.

 

Our consideration of sustainability is holistic; it includes ESG but is more than ESG. We consider financial sustainability – conservatism around the balance sheet, for example – and stewardship by management – the treatment of all stakeholders through a crisis, for example – to be as essential to the sustainability positioning of a company as the product or service the company sells.

 

When assessing a company’s sustainability we ask ourselves the following questions:

  • Products and services
    Do the products and services make a valuable contribution to sustainable development?
  • Context
    Can the company benefit from sustainability tailwinds and negative headwinds?
  • Company ethos
    Do the culture and values embody sustainability and continuous improvement?
  • Operational impact
    Is the company trying to reduce impacts from its operations?

We avoid companies that do not contribute to sustainable development and we engage with companies to improve sustainability outcomes.

 

We have established a materiality threshold for harmful or controversial activities at 5% of revenues – 0% for tobacco production and controversial weapons. At Stewart Investors, we explicitly seek to invest in companies that are making a positive contribution to society. You can read our position statement in full on the website.

 

We supplement our internal research around sustainability using Sustainalytics. At the end of each quarter, portfolios are checked to ensure companies meet global norms for best practices and raise no exceptions against our thresholds for harmful activities. We also receive controversy reporting from RepRisk.

 

Issues such as climate change, biodiversity and water, human rights and modern slavery, and diversity and inclusion are integrated into our investment selection and engagement and voting processes. Our approach to climate change is explained in detail in our recently published report. Our approach to biodiversity and water is reflected in our selection of companies that mitigate their impact on the natural environment or provide services/products that improve efficiencies. We have engaged on a number of related issues such as palm oil, deforestation, plastic waste and the use of harmful chemicals. Human rights and modern slavery are a risk throughout the supply chain of our investee companies. Our approach is to focus on quality companies that treat their employees well and manage the risks in their supply chain effectively. Where we identify problems we engage. Our recent collaborative engagement on conflict minerals in the semi-conductor supply chain is a good example of this. Our approach to diversity is explained in our statement and article about what we have done so far. We will provide updates on related activities on these issues, amongst others, in our annual report.

 

Resources, Affiliations & Corporate Strategies:

The investment analysts are responsible for all company analysis including ESG, identifying engagement priorities, monitoring and engaging our investments and for making all voting decisions. There is no specific dedicated resource purely for ESG/RI considerations. We carry out the majority of research ourselves. Specialist third-party research is commissioned to deepen and broaden the team's understanding of complex sustainability issues.

Stewart Investors is involved with the following initiatives:

Supporting a longer-term, more inclusive industry

  • Altiorem – supporting the world's first community-built sustainable finance library since 2020
  • Future Asset – helping to promote careers in finance to high school girls
  • GAIN – (Girls Are Investors) improving gender diversity in asset management
  • Intentional Endowments Network
  • Mission Investor Exchange
  • Pensions for Purpose
  • The Big Exchange – Founding supporter

 

Supporting collaborative action

  • Access to Medicine
  • IAST APAC – Investors Against Slavery and Trafficking Asia Pacific
  • India Plastics Pact – commissioned research and engagement on plastics waste in India
  • Tobacco-Free Finance Pledge
  • PRI Collaborative Platform leading collaborations on micro-insurance, plastic pellets and conflict minerals

 

Supporting the community and resource conservation

  • The Maitri Trust – grant-making charity established by Stewart Investors that supports improvement in government school and pre-school education sectors in India and South Africa
  • The Tar-Ra Fund (Maitri’s Australian equivalent) which was also independently founded
  • The Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) and the seeding of their training centre
  • Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative
  • Following on from commissioned research and engagement on plastics waste in India we have part-funded WRAP to develop and launch an India Plastics Pact
  • Carbon Disclosure Project
  • FAIRR – collaborative investor network that raises awareness of the ESG risks and opportunities brought about by intensive livestock production
  • Investor Support for Deforestation
  • Parivaar – humanitarian organisation providing care and overall development to highly vulnerable children
  • Leuchie – provides respite care for patients with neuro-degenerative conditions in the UK

 

Supporting industry transparency

  • Portfolio Explorer
  • Responsible Investment Association of Australasia (RIAA)
  • Responsible Investment Association of Canada (RIAC)
  • UK Sustainable Investment and Finance Association (UKSIF)
  • EUROSIF – Signatory
  • Towards Sustainability – making sustainability in finance the norm

 

More widely, at a First Sentier Investors Group level, we support a number of industry and trade groups that are focused on developing and improving Responsible Investment. These include:

  • Cambridge University Investment Leaders Group – Founder member & chair of working group
  • Climate Action 100+ – Supporting investor for 3 companies
  • EUROSIF – Chair
  • Finance for Biodiversity pledge – Signatory
  • Financial Services Council – Director of board and member of ESG working group, investment expert group and fund management board committee
  • First Sentier MUFG Sustainable Investment Institute
  • IGCC – Member
  • Institute Chartered Accounts in England and Wales (ICAEW) – Member
  • Investors Against Slavery & Trafficking (APAC) – Chair
  • Japan Stewardship Initiative - Signatory
  • Japan Sustainable Investment Forum - Signatory
  • London Stock Exchange Group – Member of ESG advisory committee, Member of Sustainable Investment Committee
  • Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative
  • PRI – Signatory
  • Prince’s Accounting for Sustainability (A4S) – Expert panel member
  • Responsible Investment Association of Australasia – Member
  • TCFD supporter
  • Tobacco Free Portfolios Pledge – Signatory
  • UK Investment Association – Member of sustainability & responsible investment committee and chair of standards & definitions working group
  • UK Stewardship Code – Signatory
  • UK Sustainable Investment Forum – Member
  • Women in Sustainable Finance - Member
  • 30% Club, Australia – Member
  • 40:40 Vision – Member
  • In November 2022 First Sentier Investors became a certified B Corporation (B Corp)

 

A list of the initiatives First Sentier Investors actively support and engage with is available on the First Sentier Investors website.

.

Dialshifter

This fund is helping to ‘shift the dial from brown to green’ by…

  • Investing in companies contributing to sustainable development
  • Avoiding companies engaged directly in harmful and controversial products and services
  • Engaging and voting to improve companies’ environmental and social policies and processes and practices (including leading collaborative engagements)
  • Promoting transparency and accountability
  • Researching and knowledge sharing on sustainable investing.

 

Our organisation is helping to support the Paris Climate Agreement and the Race to Net Zero by…

engaging with investee companies on their net zero targets and action plans. Creating transparent climate change reporting and sharing our learning with clients, prospects and the industry. Given our investment approach is committed to allocating capital to high-quality companies that are developing and implementing solutions to alleviate climate change and biodiversity loss, while not investing in fossil fuel companies, our portfolio are c.90% lower in carbon than their corresponding benchmarks, free of fossil fuel extraction companies, and have more than 50% of companies contributing to climate change solutions.

SDR Labelling:

Unlabelled with sustainable characteristics

Fund Holdings

Disclaimer

Please Note:

SRI Policy information is outlined in the prospectus under the investment strategy section. A copy of the prospectus can be found on our website:

https://www.stewartinvestors.com/uk/en/intermediary/our-strategies.html

 

Large cap companies are considered to those with a market capitalisation value of more than US$10bn.

.

Disclaimer

This material is for general information purposes only. It does not constitute investment or financial advice and does not take into account any specific investment objectives, financial situation or needs. This is not an offer to provide asset management services, is not a recommendation or an offer or solicitation to buy, hold or sell any security or to execute any agreement for portfolio management or investment advisory services and this material has not been prepared in connection with any such offer. Before making any investment decision you should conduct your own due diligence and consider your individual investment needs, objectives and financial situation and read the relevant offering documents for details including the risk factors disclosure. Any person who acts upon, or changes their investment position in reliance on, the information contained in these materials does so entirely at their own risk.

 

We have taken reasonable care to ensure that this material is accurate, current, and complete and fit for its intended purpose and audience as at the date of publication. To the extent this material contains any measurements or data related to environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors, these measurements or data are estimates based on information sourced by Stewart Investors from third parties including portfolio companies and such information may ultimately prove to be inaccurate. No assurance is given or liability accepted regarding the accuracy, validity or completeness of this material and we do not undertake to update it in future if circumstances change.

 

Selling restrictions

In the EU, this material is a marketing communication. The fund(s) mentioned here may or may not be registered for marketing to investors in your location. If registered, marketing may cease or be terminated in accordance with the terms of the EU Cross Border Distribution Framework.

 

Certain funds referred to in this material are identified as sub-funds of First Sentier Investors Global Umbrella Fund plc, an umbrella investment company registered in Ireland (“VCC”). Further information is contained in the Prospectus and Key Information Documents (KID) which are available in English, German, French, Danish, Spanish, Italian, Dutch, Norwegian and Swedish, along with a summary of investor’s rights, free of charge by writing to: Stewart Investors, 1 Grand Canal Square, Grand Canal Harbour, Dublin 2, Ireland or by telephoning +353 1 635 6798 between 9am and 5pm (Dublin time) Monday to Friday or by visiting www.stewartinvestors.com. Telephone calls may be recorded.

 

About First Sentier Investors

References to ‘we’, ‘us’ or ‘our’ are references to First Sentier Investors, a global asset management business which is ultimately owned by Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc (MUFG). Our investment team operates under the trading name of Stewart Investors which is part of the First Sentier Investors Group.

This material may not be copied or reproduced in whole or in part, and in any form or by any means circulated without the prior written consent of Stewart Investors.

 

We communicate and conduct business through different legal entities in different locations. This material is communicated:

  • in the United Kingdom by First Sentier Investors (UK) Funds Limited, authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA ref no. 143359; Registered office: Finsbury Circus House, 15 Finsbury Circus, London EC2M 7EB; Company no. 2294743).
  • in the European Economic Area by First Sentier Investors (Ireland) Limited, authorised and regulated in Ireland by the Central Bank of Ireland (CBI ref no. C182306; Registered office: 70 Sir John Rogerson’s Quay, Dublin 2, Ireland; Company no. 629188).
  • in other jurisdictions, where this document may lawfully be issued, by First Sentier Investors International IM Limited, authorised and regulated in the UK by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA ref no. 122512; Registered office: 23 St. Andrew Square, Edinburgh, EH2 1BB; Company no. SC079063).

 

To the extent permitted by law, MUFG and its subsidiaries are not liable for any loss or damage as a result of reliance on any statement or information contained in this document. Neither MUFG nor any of its subsidiaries guarantee the performance of any investment products referred to in this document or the repayment of capital. Any investments referred to are not deposits or other liabilities of MUFG or its subsidiaries, and are subject to investment risk, including loss of income and capital invested.

 

© First Sentier Investors Group

All rights reserved.

Fund Name SRI Style SDR Labelling Product Region Asset Type Launch Date Last Amended

Stewart Investors Indian Subcontinent All Cap Fund

Sustainable Style Unlabelled with sustainable characteristics OEIC Indian Sub-continent Equity 15/11/2006

Objectives

The Fund aims to achieve capital growth over the long-term (at least five years).

 

Fund Size: £512.00m

(as at: 31/03/2023)

Total Screened Themed SRI Assets: £14550.00m

(as at: 31/03/2023)

Total Responsible Ownership Assets: £14550.00m

(as at: 31/03/2023)

Total Assets Under Management: £14550.00m

(as at: 31/03/2023)

ISIN: GB00B1FXTG93, GB00B1FXTF86, GB00B2PF5X11, GB00B8N1MB01, GB00B84RNC52

Sustainable, Responsible &/or ESG Overview

The Fund aims to achieve absolute returns over the long-term by making investments into high-quality companies that contribute to, and benefit from, sustainable development. The team achieves positive social and environmental outcomes by avoiding companies that participate in harmful and controversial practices and investing in, and engaging with, companies that directly or indirectly support positive social and environmental outcomes such as health and wellbeing, financial inclusion, waste, water and energy efficiency and renewable energy. Engagement and voting are used as tools to improve the underlying companies’ approaches to social and environmental issues. The team uses Project Drawdown to map the portfolio to climate change and biodiversity solutions and Human Development Pillars to map to social factors like health and wellbeing, financial inclusion and water and sanitation. All holdings are also mapped to the Sustainable Development Goals.

Information received directly from Fund Manager

Please select what you would like to read:

Fund Filters

Sustainability - General
Sustainability policy

Funds that have policies that consider (environmental and social) sustainability issues. Strategies vary but are likely to consider environmental issues like climate change, carbon emissions, biodiversity loss, resource management, environmental impacts; and social issues like equal opportunities, human rights, labour standards, diversity and adherence to internationally recognised codes. See fund information.

Sustainability focus

Find funds which substantially focus on sustainability issues

Sustainability theme or focus

Find funds where there is a significant emphasis on (environmental and social) sustainability. Funds with a 'sustainability theme' typically place more emphasis on the area than funds with a 'sustainability policy' - meaning that it is more likely to drive investment selection. Strategies vary. See fund information for further detail.

Encourage more sustainable practices through stewardship

A core element of these funds aim to encourage higher sustainability standards across business practices through responsible ownership / stewardship / engagement / voting activity

UN Global Compact linked exclusion policy

Find funds that use the UN Global Compact to inform or help direct where they can or cannot invest and will typically not invest in companies with significant breaches (low standards) - although strategies vary. (The UNGC covers a wide range of issues - search 'UNGC'). See https://unglobalcompact.org/

Report against sustainability objectives

Find funds that publicly report their performance against specifically named sustainability objectives (in addition to reporting their financial performance)

Environmental - General
Environmental policy

Funds that have policies which relate to environmental issues. These will typically set out the fund's stance on issues such as pollution, climate change, resource management, biodiversity loss, carbon emissions, plastics and/or additional environmental impacts. Strategies vary. See fund information for further information.

Limits exposure to carbon intensive industries

Funds that limit or 'reduce' their exposure to carbon intensive industries (ie sectors which are major contributors to climate change. Funds vary - some funds may be 'underweight' in this area which means they may have some investment in highly carbon intensive areas. Funds of this kind may choose companies they consider to be 'best in sector' and encourage ever higher standards. Strategies vary. See fund information for further details.

Climate Change & Energy
Climate change / greenhouse gas emissions policy

Funds that have policies (documented strategies that explain their position on) climate change related issues such as greenhouse gas/carbon emissions, net zero, transitioning to lower carbon. Strategies vary. Read fund details for further information.

Coal, oil & / or gas majors excluded

Funds that avoid investing in major coal, oil and/or gas (extraction) companies. Funds vary: some may exclude all companies that extract oil. Others may have exposure to oil extraction via more diversified energy companies. See fund literature to confirm details.

Fracking and tar sands excluded

Funds that avoid companies involved in fracking and tar sands - which are widely regarded as controversial methods of oil and gas extraction. Strategies vary. See fund information for further information.

Arctic drilling exclusion

Funds that avoid companies that are involved in extracting oil from the Arctic regions. See fund literature for further details.

Fossil fuel reserves exclusion

Funds that avoid investing in companies with coal, oil and gas reserves. See fund information for further details.

Encourage transition to low carbon through stewardship activity

A core element of these funds will aim to encourage the transition to lower carbon activities through responsible ownership / stewardship / engagement / voting activity

Invests in clean energy / renewables

Funds that hold companies in the clean energy and renewable energy sectors (at the time research was supplied). Fund strategies vary, in particular the proportion of investment in these areas may vary significantly. Check fund literature for details.

Nuclear exclusion policy

Find funds that have policies which say they avoid or limit their investment in the nuclear industry. Strategies vary. See fund information for further detail.

Fossil fuel exploration exclusion - direct involvement

The fund manager excludes companies with direct involvement in fossil fuel exploration (eg coal, oil and gas companies)

Fossil fuel exploration exclusion – indirect involvement

The fund manager excludes companies with indirect involvement in fossil fuel exploration. For example they would be expected to exclude banks and insurance companies that are effectively enabling new coal, oil and or gas reserves to be discovered and in due course extracted through the provision of necessary finance or services.

Social / Employment
Labour standards policy

Find funds that have a labour standards policy - which can be expected to mean that the fund will invest in / favour companies that have higher standards in this area - although fund strategies can vary significantly (as with all policy areas). See eg https://www.ilo.org/international-labour-standards

Ethical Values Led Exclusions
Ethical policies

Find funds that have policies that set out their position on ethical or 'personal values' based issues. Strategies vary. See fund information for further detail.

Tobacco and related product manufacturers excluded

Companies are excluded if they are involved in any aspect of the production chain for tobacco products, including cigarettes, vaping, e-cigarettes, chewing tobacco and cigars.

Armaments manufacturers avoided

Find funds that avoid companies that manufacture products intended specifically for military use. Fund strategies vary - particularly with regard to non-strategic military products. See fund literature for fund specific details.

Civilian firearms production exclusion

Find funds with a written civilian firearms exclusion policy - meaning that they will not invest in companies that make (or perhaps also sell) handguns made for non-military users.

Alcohol production excluded

Find funds that avoid investment in companies involved in the production of alcohol. Strategies vary; some funds allow a small proportion of profits to come from this area. See fund literature for further information.

Gambling avoidance policy

Find funds that avoid companies with significant involvement in the gambling industry. Some funds may allow a small proportion of profits to come from this area. See fund policy for further details.

Pornography avoidance policy

Find funds that avoid companies that derive significant income from pornography and related areas. Strategies vary. See fund details for further information.

Animal welfare policy

Find funds with policies that require specific animal welfare standards to be met. These may reference well-known welfare standards (3Rs - Replace, Reduce, Refine) or certification schemes. Strategies vary. See fund information for further detail.

Animal testing - excluded except if for medical purposes

Find funds that avoid companies that test their products on animals for purposes other than medical benefit (e.g. for cosmetics). Strategies vary. See fund literature for further information.

Human Rights
Human rights policy

Find funds that have policies relating to human rights issues. Funds of this kind typically require companies to demonstrate higher standards, although some fund managers work to encourage improvements. Investee companies are often judged against internationally agreed norms or standards. Strategies vary. See fund information for further detail.

Child labour exclusion

Find funds that have policies in place to ensure they do not invest in companies that employ children.

Oppressive regimes (not free or democratic) exclusion policy

Find funds with policies that exclude companies or other assets where regimes are not democratic, or where people may be oppressed. May use eg. Freedom House research. Strategies vary. See fund literature for further information.

Responsible supply chain policy or theme

Find funds that have policies or a theme that relates to the responsible management of supply chains. These may relate to employment issues, notably people employed by their suppliers, as well as the sourcing of materials and products. See fund literature for further information.

Modern slavery exclusion policy

The fund has a policy which excludes assets with involvement in Modern Slavery

LGBTQ+ policy

The fund has a policy which sets out its position on LGBTQ+ related social issues and their expectations of investee assets - typically meaning they won't invest in companies with poor standards. See fund information.

Banking & Financials
Predatory lending exclusion

Fund excludes financial services companies with widely criticised, aggressive lending practices where interest rates are typically very high, includes ‘doorstep lending’)

Governance & Management
Governance policy

Find fund options that have policies that relate to corporate governance issues such as board structure, executive remuneration, bribery and/or corporate corruption. These funds will typically avoid companies with poor practices. Strategies vary. See fund literature for further information.

Avoids companies with poor governance

Find funds that aim to avoid investing in companies with poor governance practices.(e.g. board structure, management practices etc.) Views may however vary on what counts as 'poor' practices - and funds may not immediately divest as they may prefer to work to encourage higher standards. See fund literature for further information.

UN sanctions exclusion

Exclude companies that are subject to United Nations sanctions. See eg https://main.un.org/securitycouncil/en/content/un-sc-consolidated-list

Anti-bribery and corruption policy

Find funds that have policies explaining how managers will respond to assets / companies that do not comply with relevant anti-bribery and anti-corruption standards or laws. Strategies vary; options include stewardship/ engagement and divestment - or a combination. See fund literature for further information.

Digital / cyber security policy

Find funds that have policies explaining how the fund managers take into account digital/cyber security related risks. Funds with cyber policies will typically favour companies with higher standards or that are helping to solve problems - but strategies vary. See fund literature for further information.

Encourage board diversity e.g. gender

Fund managers encourage the companies they invest in to have more diverse board structures (e.g. more women on boards)

Encourage higher ESG standards through stewardship activity

A core element of these funds will aim to encourage higher ESG standards through responsible ownership / stewardship / engagement /voting activity

Fund Governance
ESG integration strategy

Find funds that factor in 'environmental, social and governance' issues as part of their investment decision making process. A focus on 'ESG' typically means a fund is carrying out additional research to help reduce ESG related risks. It does not necessarily mean a focus on sustainability. Strategies vary. See fund literature.

ESG factors included in Assessment of Value (AoV) report

Environmental, social and governance issues are part of this fund’s reporting of their ‘value’ to clients. AoV reporting is a statutory requirement. Including ESG factors in its calculation is not.

Asset Size
Over 50% small / mid cap companies

Find funds where more than half of the funds' assets are invested in smaller or medium sized companies (i.e. below around £5 -10 billion).

Invests in small, mid and large cap companies / assets

Find a fund that invests in a combination of small, medium and larger (potentially multinational)companies.

Impact Methodologies
Aims to generate positive impacts (or 'outcomes')

Funds that aim to help or support the delivery of positive social or environmental impacts (or societal/real world outcomes) by investing in companies they regard as beneficial to people and / or the planet. Strategies vary. See fund literature for further information.

Measures positive impacts

Funds that aim to measure the positive real world environmental and / or social benefits that are associated with their investment strategy. Funds that aim to deliver positive impacts and measure those impacts may be referred to as 'impact funds' - although impact measurement is not restricted to impact funds. Strategies vary. See fund information.

Positive environmental impact theme

Find funds that specifically set out to help deliver positive environmental impacts, benefits or 'real world' outcomes.

Positive social impact theme

Find funds that specifically state that they aim to deliver positive social (i.e. people related) impacts and/or outcomes.

Invests in environmental solutions companies

Find funds that direct investment towards companies where a major part of their business is about solving environmental challenges. e.g. companies helping to address climate change.

Invests in social solutions companies

Find funds that invest in companies where a major part of their business is specifically aimed at helping to address social challenges. e.g. companies helping to address poverty.

Aim to deliver positive impacts through engagement

Fund aims to deliver positive environmental and or social impacts (real world benefits) through its engagement with investee assets

How The Fund Works
Significant harm exclusion

Aims to avoid companies that do significant harm. This originates from the EU’s sustainable finance ‘DNSH’ (do no significant harm) work, which is not necessarily used by UK investors.

Assets mapped to SDGs

Find funds that have 'mapped' (reviewed) their investment selection and management strategies to identify which of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) the fund is helping to address.

Combines norms based exclusions with other SRI criteria

Find funds that make significant use of internationally agreed 'norms' (e.g. United Nations Global Compact - UNGC - or the UN Sustainable Development Goals - SDGs) as part of their investment selection process alongside additional SRI criteria such as positive or negative stock selection policies and/or stewardship strategies.

Focus on ESG risk mitigation

A major focus of these funds is the careful management of environmental, social and governance (ESG) related risks - typically by avoiding or being underweight in companies seen as posing major risks in these areas (i.e. not necessarily by using themes, exclusions etc).

SRI / ESG / Ethical policies explained on website

Find funds that have published explanations of their ethical, social and/or environmental policies online (i.e. fund decision making strategies/ buy/sell &/or asset management strategies).

Unscreened Assets & Cash
All assets (except cash) meet published sustainability criteria

All assets held in the fund - except cash - meet the sustainability criteria published in fund documentation.

Intended Clients & Product Options
Intended for investors interested in sustainability

Finds funds designed to meet the needs of individual investors with an interest in sustainability issues.

Intended for clients who want to have a positive impact

Finds funds designed to meet the needs of individual investors with an interest in ‘Impact investment funds’ which help or support the delivery of positive social or environmental impacts (or societal/real world outcomes) by investing in companies they regard as beneficial to people and / or the planet. Strategies vary. See fund literature for further information.

Available via an ISA (OEIC only)

Find funds that are available via a tax efficient ISA product wrapper.

Labels & Accreditations
RSMR rated

Find funds that are rated by research agency 'Rayner Spencer Mills Research' (awarded 'RSMR Rated' status). Read fund literature or contact RSMR for further information.

Fund Management Company Information

About The Business
Boutique / specialist fund management company

Find fund management companies that are smaller or specialise in particular areas - notably, ideally ESG related. Strategies vary.

Responsible ownership / stewardship policy or strategy (AFM company wide)

Finds fund management companies that have a published company wide stewardship, engagement and / or responsible ownership policy or strategy that covers all investments. Stewardship typically involves encouraging higher ESG standards through voting and dialogue.

ESG / SRI engagement (AFM company wide)

Find fund management companies that actively encourage higher 'environmental, social and governance' and/or 'sustainable and responsible investment' practices across investee companies - typically where the aim is to encourage positive change that is aligned with the best interests of investors. Strategies vary. See additional information and options.

Vote all* shares at AGMs / EGMs (AFM company wide)

Find fund managers that vote all* the shares they own at Annual General Meetings and Extraordinary General Meetings. A commitment to voting shares is a key indicator of 'responsible share ownership' demonstrating their support for or disagreement with management policy. (*situations can legitimately, occasionally occur where voting proves impossible, but in principle all shares should be voted.)

Responsible ownership / ESG a key differentiator (AFM company wide)

Find fund managers that consider responsible ownership and ESG to be a key differentiator for their business.

Integrates ESG factors into all / most (AFM) fund research

Find fund management companies that consider environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues when deciding whether or not to invest in a company for all / almost all of their funds and other assets. This is increasingly seen as part of sound risk management.

In-house diversity improvement programme (AFM company wide)

Finds organisations / fund managers that have an in-house (company wide) diversity improvement programme - meaning that they are working to ensure that within their own businesses they employ people from diverse backgrounds - often typically focused on ethnicity and/or sex.

Diversity, equality & inclusion engagement policy (AFM company wide)

Find fund management companies that encourage the companies they invest in to have strong diversity, race, gender and other equality policies across all assets held, not simply screened or themed SRI/ESG funds. (ie Asset Management company wide).

Collaborations & Affiliations
PRI signatory

Find fund management companies that have signed up to the UN backed 'Principles of Responsible Investment'.

UKSIF member

Find fund management companies that are members of UKSIF - the UK Sustainable Investment and Finance association

Fund EcoMarket partner

Find fund management companies that have partnered with Fund EcoMarket - meaning that they are helping to improve access to information on sustainable and responsible investment by paying an annual fee to us which enables us to publish information for free. Partner funds are listed ahead of other funds and have their logos displayed.

Investment Association (IA) member

Fund management entity is a member of the Investment Association https://www.theia.org/

Resources
In-house responsible ownership / voting expertise

Find fund management companies that employ people to steer and support fund managers in voting shares at company AGM's and EGMs in ways that are consistent with encouraging higher ESG/sustainability standards.

Employ specialist ESG / SRI / sustainability researchers

Find a fund management company that directly employs specialist ESG/SRI/sustainability researchers or analysts. This allows asset managers to discuss environmental, social and governance risks and opportunities directly with companies.

Use specialist ESG / SRI / sustainability research companies

Find fund management companies that makes use of expert external research companies. This can help deliver specialist expertise and means resources are pooled with other investors.

ESG specialists on all investment desks (AFM company wide)

Finds organisations / fund managers that have one or more ESG/sustainability experts on all investment teams or 'desks' (all asset types)

Accreditations
B Corp certified (AFM company wide)

Fund manager has achieved accreditation which requires them to articulate their purpose and have high environmental and social standards.

PRI A+ rated (AFM company wide)

Finds organisations / fund managers that have an A+ PRI rating - meaning they are highly rated according to the 'Principles of Responsible Investment'

UK Stewardship Code signatory (AFM company wide)

Find fund managers that are signatories to the FRC UK Stewardship Code, which sets out a framework for constructive investor / investee relations where fund managers are encouraged to behave like responsible, typically longer term 'company owners'.

Engagement Approach
Regularly lead collaborative ESG initiatives (AFM company wide)

Find fund management companies that regularly initiate or run industry wide (collaborative) investor projects aimed at raising environmental, social and governance standards amongst investee companies.

Encourage responsible corporate taxation (AFM company wide)

Find fund management companies that are working with the companies they invest in to encourage more responsible corporate taxation.

Engaging on climate change issues

Fund manager has stewardship /responsible ownership strategy that is focused on addressing climate change with investee assets.

Engaging to reduce plastics pollution / waste

Asset manager has stewardship /responsible ownership strategy with involves encouraging investee asset to reduce plastic waste and pollution.

Engaging on biodiversity / nature issues

The asset manager has a responsible ownership / stewardship strategy that focuses on biodiversity and nature issues relating to the assets they invest the aim of which will be to reduce harm and or deliver improvement. Strategies vary. https://tnfd.global

Engaging on human rights issues

Asset manager has responsible ownership / stewardship strategy in place which aims to address human rights issues in investee companies (and potentially their suppliers) with the aim of raising standards

Engaging on labour / employment issues

Asset manager has responsible ownership / stewardship strategy in place that aims to improve labour standards for the benefit of employees in investee companies (and potentially their suppliers)

Engaging on diversity, equality and / or inclusion issues

Asset management company has a stewardship strategy in place which involves working to raise diversity, equality and inclusion standards across investee assets

Engaging on governance issues

Fund managers have stewardship strategies in place that focus on improving governance standards across investee assets

Engaging on responsible supply chain issues

Has a stewardship / responsible ownership strategy that encourages responsible supply chain - ie the managers will discuss environmental, social and governance issues with investee companies with the aim of raising standards

Company Wide Exclusions
Controversial weapons avoidance policy (AFM company wide)

Find fund management companies (not funds) that avoid investment in 'controversial weapons' across all of their funds and other investment vehicles.

Tobacco avoidance policy (AFM company wide)

Find fund management companies that avoid investment in tobacco (manufacturing) companies across all their assets.

Fossil fuel exclusion policy (AFM company wide)

Find fund management companies that avoid investment in fossil fuel companies (e.g. coal, oil and gas) across all of their funds. (and/ or other assets.)

Review(ing) carbon / fossil fuel exposure for all funds (AFM company wide)

Find funds / fund managers that are reviewing, or have reviewed, their exposure to carbon intensive industries including (but not only) mining, oil and gas companies. (Typically with reference to climate change.)

Coal exclusion policy (group wide coal mining exclusion policy)

This asset manager excludes direct investment in the coal mining industry. Managers ability to do this may depend on the geographic regions in which they invest.

Do not invest in companies with fossil fuel reserves

Asset management company excludes companies with fossil fuel reserves across all assets/funds

Climate & Net Zero Transition
Net Zero commitment (AFM company wide)

Fund management organisations that have pledged to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions to ‘net zero’. Strategies vary - this area is changing rapidly.

Net Zero - have set a Net Zero target date (AFM company wide)

This asset management company has set a date by which they plan to achieve net zero greenhouse gas / CO2e emissions.

Encourage carbon / greenhouse gas reduction (AFM company wide)

Find fund management companies that are working with the companies they invest in to encourage reductions in carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions.

Carbon offsetting - offset carbon as part of our net zero plan (AFM company wide)

This asset management company plans to achieve net zero greenhouse gas (CO2e) emissions with the help of a scheme that will lock away an amount of carbon that is equivalent to the company’s own emissions – so that the end result is ‘net zero’. Calculations and scope vary.

In-house carbon / GHG reduction policy (AFM company wide)

Find fund management companies that are working to reduce their own (fund management company) carbon/greenhouse gas emissions.

Working towards a ‘Net Zero’ commitment (AFM company wide)

Finds organisations / fund management companies that are in the process of working out how to make a ‘net zero commitment’ - meaning that when that is finalised they will have started the process of reducing their total greenhouse gas emissions to'zero'.

Transparency
Publish responsible ownership / stewardship report (AFM company wide)

Find fund management companies that publish a report detailing their responsible investment ownership - also known as 'Stewardship' - activity.

Full SRI / responsible ownership policy information on company website

Find companies that publish information about their sustainable and responsible investment strategies on their company website.

Publish full voting record (AFM company wide)

Fund management companies that publish a full record of how they vote their shares at AGMs (annual general meetings) and EGMs (extraordinary general meetings). Voting strategies have an important role to play encouraging higher environmental, social and governance standards.

Net Zero transition plan publicly available (AFM company wide)

This asset management company has published a plan that explains how they are going to achieve net zero greenhouse gas / CO2e emissions.

Dialshifter statement

Find fund management companies that have supplied Dialshifter information. See Dialshifter tab within record for more information.

Sustainable, Responsible &/or ESG Policy:

The Stewart Investors investment team only invests in high-quality companies that are well positioned to both contribute to, and benefit from, sustainable development. This means that companies with material exposure to harmful or controversial products and services are naturally avoided. Investing in companies that fail to discharge their environmental stewardship and human rights responsibilities is also inconsistent with the team investment philosophy. 

 

All harmful business activities are defined and publicly disclosed on our website. We have established a materiality threshold for harmful or controversial activities at 5% of revenues – 0% threshold for manufacture of tobacco products and controversial weapons. In exceptional circumstances, we may invest in companies where the exposure is above the 5% threshold. In these cases there will be full disclosure on the rationale for investment. The reasons might include indirect involvement, for example, providing safety products to the fossil fuel or defence industry. Exceptions may also relate to legacy activities which are being wound down. In these cases the analysts will engage with the company and encourage them to exit those activities. There is also a group-wide policy prohibiting investments that do not adhere to international conventions, including cluster munitions, land mine manufacturers, sanctioned and high-risk countries and tobacco manufacturers.

 

The investment team screens the portfolios quarterly using Sustainalytics to ensure that each company held continues to meet the global norms for best business practices and is not breaching the list of harmful or controversial products and services. Checks are also completed pre and post-trade using the order management system, these include breaches of the UN Human Rights Norms for Businesses and the UN Global Compact Principles. The team receives controversy reporting from RepRisk on all shortlisted and held companies. Where issues are flagged by these services, the analysts will investigate the controversy and, if genuine, will engage with the company to improve practices. If the engagement is unsuccessful the team will divest.

 

We aim to create positive environmental and social outcomes across a broad range of factors by avoiding companies that are directly involved in harmful and controversial products and services and investing in companies that contribute to, and benefit from, sustainable development. Companies are selected from the bottom-up and have exposure to a broad range of themes including climate action, renewable energy, energy, waste and water efficiency, health and wellbeing, financial inclusion, education and employment, fair wages, sanitation, diversity, equity and inclusion.

 

Stewardship, engagement and voting, is also used to improve outcomes. Recent engagement topics have included climate change, remuneration, gender diversity, sustainability of soy and palm oil, lead and VOC levels in paint, living wage, recycling and packaging, plastic pellets and deforestation.

Process:

Sustainability is core to our investment philosophy and integrated into our investment process. We do not have a separate team that looks at sustainability – every investment team member analyses the sustainability positioning of a business, and is also responsible for engaging with companies.

 

We only invest in high-quality companies that contribute to, and benefit from, sustainable development. We define development as sustainable if it furthers human development and has an ecological footprint that respects planetary boundaries. All members of the investment team sign our Hippocratic Oath, pledging to uphold the principles of stewardship.

 

We approach sustainability as a means to mitigate risks and as a driver of investment returns. Integrating sustainability into our analysis is a natural extension of having a long-term investment horizon; the sustainability headwinds and tailwinds that affect companies are different to the shorter-term risks that businesses face.

 

Our consideration of sustainability is holistic; it includes ESG but is more than ESG. We consider financial sustainability – conservatism around the balance sheet, for example – and stewardship by management – the treatment of all stakeholders through a crisis, for example – to be as essential to the sustainability positioning of a company as the product or service the company sells.

 

When assessing a company’s sustainability we ask ourselves the following questions:

  • Products and services
    Do the products and services make a valuable contribution to sustainable development?
  • Context
    Can the company benefit from sustainability tailwinds and negative headwinds?
  • Company ethos
    Do the culture and values embody sustainability and continuous improvement?
  • Operational impact
    Is the company trying to reduce impacts from its operations?

We avoid companies that do not contribute to sustainable development and we engage with companies to improve sustainability outcomes.

 

We have established a materiality threshold for harmful or controversial activities at 5% of revenues – 0% for tobacco production and controversial weapons. At Stewart Investors, we explicitly seek to invest in companies that are making a positive contribution to society. You can read our position statement in full on the website.

 

We supplement our internal research around sustainability using Sustainalytics. At the end of each quarter, portfolios are checked to ensure companies meet global norms for best practices and raise no exceptions against our thresholds for harmful activities. We also receive controversy reporting from RepRisk.

 

Issues such as climate change, biodiversity and water, human rights and modern slavery, and diversity and inclusion are integrated into our investment selection and engagement and voting processes. Our approach to climate change is explained in detail in our recently published report. Our approach to biodiversity and water is reflected in our selection of companies that mitigate their impact on the natural environment or provide services/products that improve efficiencies. We have engaged on a number of related issues such as palm oil, deforestation, plastic waste and the use of harmful chemicals. Human rights and modern slavery are a risk throughout the supply chain of our investee companies. Our approach is to focus on quality companies that treat their employees well and manage the risks in their supply chain effectively. Where we identify problems we engage. Our recent collaborative engagement on conflict minerals in the semi-conductor supply chain is a good example of this. Our approach to diversity is explained in our statement and article about what we have done so far. We will provide updates on related activities on these issues, amongst others, in our annual report.

 

Resources, Affiliations & Corporate Strategies:

The investment analysts are responsible for all company analysis including ESG, identifying engagement priorities, monitoring and engaging our investments and for making all voting decisions. There is no specific dedicated resource purely for ESG/RI considerations. We carry out the majority of research ourselves. Specialist third-party research is commissioned to deepen and broaden the team's understanding of complex sustainability issues.

Stewart Investors is involved with the following initiatives:

Supporting a longer-term, more inclusive industry

  • Altiorem – supporting the world's first community-built sustainable finance library since 2020
  • Future Asset – helping to promote careers in finance to high school girls
  • GAIN – (Girls Are Investors) improving gender diversity in asset management
  • Intentional Endowments Network
  • Mission Investor Exchange
  • Pensions for Purpose
  • The Big Exchange – Founding supporter

 

Supporting collaborative action

  • Access to Medicine
  • IAST APAC – Investors Against Slavery and Trafficking Asia Pacific
  • India Plastics Pact – commissioned research and engagement on plastics waste in India
  • Tobacco-Free Finance Pledge
  • PRI Collaborative Platform leading collaborations on micro-insurance, plastic pellets and conflict minerals

 

Supporting the community and resource conservation

  • The Maitri Trust – grant-making charity established by Stewart Investors that supports improvement in government school and pre-school education sectors in India and South Africa
  • The Tar-Ra Fund (Maitri’s Australian equivalent) which was also independently founded
  • The Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) and the seeding of their training centre
  • Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative
  • Following on from commissioned research and engagement on plastics waste in India we have part-funded WRAP to develop and launch an India Plastics Pact
  • Carbon Disclosure Project
  • FAIRR – collaborative investor network that raises awareness of the ESG risks and opportunities brought about by intensive livestock production
  • Investor Support for Deforestation
  • Parivaar – humanitarian organisation providing care and overall development to highly vulnerable children
  • Leuchie – provides respite care for patients with neuro-degenerative conditions in the UK

 

Supporting industry transparency

  • Portfolio Explorer
  • Responsible Investment Association of Australasia (RIAA)
  • Responsible Investment Association of Canada (RIAC)
  • UK Sustainable Investment and Finance Association (UKSIF)
  • EUROSIF – Signatory
  • Towards Sustainability – making sustainability in finance the norm

 

More widely, at a First Sentier Investors Group level, we support a number of industry and trade groups that are focused on developing and improving Responsible Investment. These include:

  • Cambridge University Investment Leaders Group – Founder member & chair of working group
  • Climate Action 100+ – Supporting investor for 3 companies
  • EUROSIF – Chair
  • Finance for Biodiversity pledge – Signatory
  • Financial Services Council – Director of board and member of ESG working group, investment expert group and fund management board committee
  • First Sentier MUFG Sustainable Investment Institute
  • IGCC – Member
  • Institute Chartered Accounts in England and Wales (ICAEW) – Member
  • Investors Against Slavery & Trafficking (APAC) – Chair
  • Japan Stewardship Initiative - Signatory
  • Japan Sustainable Investment Forum - Signatory
  • London Stock Exchange Group – Member of ESG advisory committee, Member of Sustainable Investment Committee
  • Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative
  • PRI – Signatory
  • Prince’s Accounting for Sustainability (A4S) – Expert panel member
  • Responsible Investment Association of Australasia – Member
  • TCFD supporter
  • Tobacco Free Portfolios Pledge – Signatory
  • UK Investment Association – Member of sustainability & responsible investment committee and chair of standards & definitions working group
  • UK Stewardship Code – Signatory
  • UK Sustainable Investment Forum – Member
  • Women in Sustainable Finance - Member
  • 30% Club, Australia – Member
  • 40:40 Vision – Member
  • In November 2022 First Sentier Investors became a certified B Corporation (B Corp)

 

A list of the initiatives First Sentier Investors actively support and engage with is available on the First Sentier Investors website.

.

Dialshifter

This fund is helping to ‘shift the dial from brown to green’ by…

  • Investing in companies contributing to sustainable development
  • Avoiding companies engaged directly in harmful and controversial products and services
  • Engaging and voting to improve companies’ environmental and social policies and processes and practices (including leading collaborative engagements)
  • Promoting transparency and accountability
  • Researching and knowledge sharing on sustainable investing.

 

Our organisation is helping to support the Paris Climate Agreement and the Race to Net Zero by…

engaging with investee companies on their net zero targets and action plans. Creating transparent climate change reporting and sharing our learning with clients, prospects and the industry. Given our investment approach is committed to allocating capital to high-quality companies that are developing and implementing solutions to alleviate climate change and biodiversity loss, while not investing in fossil fuel companies, our portfolio are c.90% lower in carbon than their corresponding benchmarks, free of fossil fuel extraction companies, and have more than 50% of companies contributing to climate change solutions.

SDR Labelling:

Unlabelled with sustainable characteristics

Fund Holdings

Disclaimer

Please Note:

SRI Policy information is outlined in the prospectus under the investment strategy section. A copy of the prospectus can be found on our website:

https://www.stewartinvestors.com/uk/en/intermediary/our-strategies.html

 

Large cap companies are considered to those with a market capitalisation value of more than US$10bn.

.

Disclaimer

This material is for general information purposes only. It does not constitute investment or financial advice and does not take into account any specific investment objectives, financial situation or needs. This is not an offer to provide asset management services, is not a recommendation or an offer or solicitation to buy, hold or sell any security or to execute any agreement for portfolio management or investment advisory services and this material has not been prepared in connection with any such offer. Before making any investment decision you should conduct your own due diligence and consider your individual investment needs, objectives and financial situation and read the relevant offering documents for details including the risk factors disclosure. Any person who acts upon, or changes their investment position in reliance on, the information contained in these materials does so entirely at their own risk.

 

We have taken reasonable care to ensure that this material is accurate, current, and complete and fit for its intended purpose and audience as at the date of publication. To the extent this material contains any measurements or data related to environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors, these measurements or data are estimates based on information sourced by Stewart Investors from third parties including portfolio companies and such information may ultimately prove to be inaccurate. No assurance is given or liability accepted regarding the accuracy, validity or completeness of this material and we do not undertake to update it in future if circumstances change.

 

Selling restrictions

In the EU, this material is a marketing communication. The fund(s) mentioned here may or may not be registered for marketing to investors in your location. If registered, marketing may cease or be terminated in accordance with the terms of the EU Cross Border Distribution Framework.

 

Certain funds referred to in this material are identified as sub-funds of First Sentier Investors Global Umbrella Fund plc, an umbrella investment company registered in Ireland (“VCC”). Further information is contained in the Prospectus and Key Information Documents (KID) which are available in English, German, French, Danish, Spanish, Italian, Dutch, Norwegian and Swedish, along with a summary of investor’s rights, free of charge by writing to: Stewart Investors, 1 Grand Canal Square, Grand Canal Harbour, Dublin 2, Ireland or by telephoning +353 1 635 6798 between 9am and 5pm (Dublin time) Monday to Friday or by visiting www.stewartinvestors.com. Telephone calls may be recorded.

 

About First Sentier Investors

References to ‘we’, ‘us’ or ‘our’ are references to First Sentier Investors, a global asset management business which is ultimately owned by Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc (MUFG). Our investment team operates under the trading name of Stewart Investors which is part of the First Sentier Investors Group.

This material may not be copied or reproduced in whole or in part, and in any form or by any means circulated without the prior written consent of Stewart Investors.

 

We communicate and conduct business through different legal entities in different locations. This material is communicated:

  • in the United Kingdom by First Sentier Investors (UK) Funds Limited, authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA ref no. 143359; Registered office: Finsbury Circus House, 15 Finsbury Circus, London EC2M 7EB; Company no. 2294743).
  • in the European Economic Area by First Sentier Investors (Ireland) Limited, authorised and regulated in Ireland by the Central Bank of Ireland (CBI ref no. C182306; Registered office: 70 Sir John Rogerson’s Quay, Dublin 2, Ireland; Company no. 629188).
  • in other jurisdictions, where this document may lawfully be issued, by First Sentier Investors International IM Limited, authorised and regulated in the UK by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA ref no. 122512; Registered office: 23 St. Andrew Square, Edinburgh, EH2 1BB; Company no. SC079063).

 

To the extent permitted by law, MUFG and its subsidiaries are not liable for any loss or damage as a result of reliance on any statement or information contained in this document. Neither MUFG nor any of its subsidiaries guarantee the performance of any investment products referred to in this document or the repayment of capital. Any investments referred to are not deposits or other liabilities of MUFG or its subsidiaries, and are subject to investment risk, including loss of income and capital invested.

 

© First Sentier Investors Group

All rights reserved.