Alexander Forbes Investments awarded top accolades for Responsible Investing

Alexander Forbes Investments Limited has once again been awarded a top accolade for their overarching approach to responsible investment by the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI), a United Nations-supported initiative and the world’s leading advocate for responsible investing.

The PRI supports an international network of more than 3 000 investor signatories globally in incorporating environmental, social and governance (ESG) considerations into their investment and ownership decisions.

The PRI rating scale ranges from A+ to E, with A+ reflecting the top scoring signatories. Alexander Forbes Investments received the following rankings for the 2020 reporting cycle:

“We are pleased to report that we have maintained our strong rating and are proud to have scored above our global peers across the majority of the reporting modules,” says Premal Ranchod, head of ESG Research at Alexander Forbes Investments.

“Alexander Forbes Investments takes responsible investing seriously. The PRI ratings reflect our continued efforts at being a leader in the field of responsible investing (RI) and securing the best possible returns at acceptable levels of risk, and sustainably, on behalf of clients. Over the years, our sustainability beliefs have been recorded in our Responsible Investing policy, outlining our philosophy and approach to RI. This policy ultimately dictates how Alexander Forbes Investments practises responsible investing on behalf of its clients,” says Ranchod.

Ranchod says Alexander Forbes Investments has a fiduciary duty to not only achieve the best possible returns at acceptable levels of risk, but also to act in the best interests of the wider community and environment within which it operates. “We do everything we can to protect our clients so that they can achieve their investment goals in the most responsible way possible. It is for this reason that we embarked on the journey to become a PRI signatory in 2008. We recognise our duty to investigate the impact of ESG-related issues on the performance of assets under our management and stewardship.”

“We also promote responsible alpha (responsible and sustainable benchmark-beating returns) by ensuring that the asset managers we select consider and evaluate the risks and opportunities arising from the consideration and incorporation of ESG factors.”

Ranchod says through its strategic relationship with Mercer, Alexander Forbes Investments is able to leverage leading global thought leadership on strategy availability and regulatory engagement surrounding RI. “Through this partnership, we can draw from Mercer’s intellectual capital to help our clients take advantage of opportunities and stay ahead of regulatory and public policy decisions around responsible investment, globally.”

“Like Alexander Forbes, Mercer is committed to working more closely with asset managers to drive responsible investing and sustainable performance on behalf of our respective clients. Mercer was a founding signatory to the PRI in 2006, helping shape its original statements and aims. For almost two decades, Mercer has continued to support and endorse both the PRI and other international organisations to promote best practice around the world,” Ranchod says.

Mercer was also recently awarded a top accolade for responsible investment strategy and governance by the PRI, proudly securing an A+ rating for strategy and governance and six A ratings for its over $300bn of assets under management in investment solutions across public and private markets.

Ranchod says that this partnership has afforded Alexander Forbes Investments a unique opportunity to enhance its responsible investing efforts and localise global best practice and research on responsible investing. This is a key advantage for our clients, says Ranchod. The philosophical alignment between our respective approaches allows us to deliver solutions that are well positioned to reach our clients’ financial goals sustainably and ethically.”

ENDS