SEB is launching the SEB Global Sustainable Companies Fund, a unique investment vehicle for those companies that are outstanding in their responsibility toward the environment and society. According to the EU’s Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation, this fund is classified as an Article 9 fund and underlines SEB’s commitment to sustainable finance through setting new future standards in sustainable investments.
Focused on Sustainability
The SEB Global Sustainable Companies Fund is one of the flagship initiatives investing exclusively in companies committed to sustainability. It falls under the Article 9 fund category and must, by this reason, make sustainable investments its core objective-a category reserved for funds with explicit sustainability goals. Not only does the fund meet the strict threshold requirements of the SFDR, but it also meets the requirements of EU Taxonomy and the United Nations SDGs. These give an added layer to ensure that companies selected for the fund will not only ‘do no significant harm’ but will also contribute positively to environmental and social sustainability.
“Interest in index-linked funds is rising at the same time as there is a demand for so-called Article 9 funds, with sustainable investments as a goal,” says Elisabet Jamal Bergström, Head of Sustainability at SEB Investment Management. With this launch, SEB is further reinforcing its position in the sustainable finance area and offering investors an opportunity to be at the forefront of the global sustainability agenda with their investment decisions.
Lower Carbon Intensity
Among the most striking features of the SEB Global Sustainable Companies Fund is its much lower carbon intensity when compared to traditional benchmarks. Its carbon intensity is approximately 50% lower compared with its benchmark, the MSCI World Net Return Index. This immense reduction underlines the commitment of SEB to the limitation of greenhouse gas emissions and finds resonance in the present global push for a low carbon economy.
According to Natasha Kubát, Portfolio Manager at SEB, the following can be taken into account simultaneously: “We can consider many sustainability parameters, such as greenhouse gas emissions, consideration of the UN’s goals for sustainable development, and compatibility with the environmental goals within the EU’s taxonomy.” This approach not only improves the sustainability profile of the fund but also places the fund among the forerunners in the new landscape of sustainable investing.
Multi-Facet Investment Strategy
The SEB Global Sustainable Companies Fund takes a strategic and systematic approach to its investment strategy, which would invest in roughly 500 companies in 20 developed markets. These would present investors with broad diversification but still give considerable focus to sustainability. Using the MSCI World Net Return Index as its benchmark, the fund is assured of remaining globally diversified but with a systematic and rules-driven model to keep it from straying too far from the benchmark.
It means a selection process that narrows down the companies based on strict sustainability criteria, considering only those companies that can show long-term commitment to environmental and social responsibility. “We are proud of this fund, which has sustainability as its goal while at the same time providing good global diversification,” Kubát added. This approach corresponds not only to the sustainability objectives of SEB but also gives investors a balanced exposure to global markets.
Maintaining Global Standards
SEB’s new fund is set to meet some of the important global standards, which include the EU Taxonomy and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Thus, through such a focus on companies genuinely working in making these frameworks a living reality, SEB determines that its fund shall, in addition, be invested in those companies with positive impacts in this world.
It also means that it meets or is above par with global standards for SEB’s greater commitment to sustainable finance and its leading role within the industry. By embedding sustainability into key investment processes, SEB sets a new benchmark for responsible investing and gives investors a clear pathway to enabling environmental and social objectives.
Cost-Effective, Sustainable Solution
On top of the focus on sustainability, the investment alternative of the SEB Global Sustainable Companies Fund is created to be cost-efficient. It is structured by SEB to have access to its comprehensive sustainability model without any sacrifice in terms of return or risk management. “We have created a cost-efficient fund that offers our complete sustainability model, and at the same time produce a return and risk profile in correspondence with the benchmark,” said Martin Rydell, Head of Index & Solutions at SEB.
This cost-effectiveness orientation expands the reach of this fund to a greater number of investors. A wider part of the population is allowed to invest in sustainability and, therefore, take part in this global quest. In this respect, SEB strikes a balance between making sustainable investment inclusive at affordable cost and high adherence to ESG principles for greater effectiveness.
SEB’s Commitment to Sustainable Investment
With the launch of the SEB Global Sustainable Companies Fund, SEB is further taking steps toward full leadership in the sustainable finance area. In this fund, it is an investment not in companies but in the future of the planet. And by giving investors a vehicle to move money into sustainability, SEB enabled their clients to create a positive impact through their investment choices.
As the demand for sustainable investment options increases with each new day passing, SEB’s Global Sustainable Companies Fund takes center stage as a vision against which current environmentally conscious investors compare their choices. By aligning financial returns with positive environmental and social outcomes, SEB is illustrating that investing in a better future for our planet can indeed be both profitable and responsible.