Institutional investors drive big chunk of ESG investing
Institutional investors’ top ESG criterion in 2020 was conflict risk, accounting for $2.73 trillion in assets.
U.S. domiciled assets under management that adopted environmental, social governance (ESG) investment strategies reached $16.6 trillion as of the beginning of 2020, according to US SIF, up 43% since 2018. Three-quarters of those assets were managed on behalf of institutional investors, the report found.
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US SIF’s findings are based on surveys and research conducted in 2020 of 530 institutional investors, 384 money managers and 1,204 community investment institutions.
Social criteria were applied to 92% of the $12 trillion invested on behalf of institutional investors, US SIF found.
Institutional investors’ top ESG criterion in 2020 was conflict risk, accounting for $2.73 trillion in assets. US SIF found that most investors who applied this criterion were addressing issues in Sudan and Iran. Both countries are on the U.S. State Department’s list of state sponsors of terrorism, the report noted.
Although not among investors’ top criteria, prison-related issues saw a huge increase — 284% to $698 billion.
“A number of institutions along with various advocacy groups have expressed concern about private prison companies because of their profit incentive to incarcerate people, particularly those from communities of color and immigrant communities,” the report noted.
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Environmental concerns near top
Assets managed according to environmental criteria increased 23% since 2018, the report found.
Climate change and carbon emissions was investors’ top environmental criterion and second top criterion overall at $2.61 trillion.
“The Investor Agenda, formed in 2018, is a global coalition of investors representing more than $35 trillion in assets that have agreed to pursue investments, corporate engagement and policy advocacy to achieve the goals of the Paris Climate Accord,” according to the report.
Tobacco ($2.47 trillion), board issues ($2.28 trillion) and sustainable resources and agriculture ($2.18 trillion) round out the top five criteria.
Assets invested according to sustainable resources criteria increased 95%, followed by a 32% increase for board issues and 17% for climate change. Meanwhile, use of conflict risk and tobacco criteria declined 8% and 3% respectively.
Money managers
Money managers’ top ESG criterion in 2020 was climate change, accounting for $4.18 trillion in assets, followed by anti-corruption at $2.44 trillion. Board issues and sustainable resources and agriculture were largely even, at $2.39 trillion and $2.38 trillion respectively. Executive pay rounded out the top five criteria at $2.22 trillion.
However, the percent increase since 2020 in how those assets are invested shows how priorities are changing. Executive pay criteria increased 122%, followed by sustainable resources at 81%. Board issues increased 66%, and climate change increased 39%. Anti-corruption, the largest governance criterion, increased 10%.
US SIF noted that conflict risk was the largest social criterion, but decreased 22% to $1.8 trillion in assets.
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