BlackRock shakes up business to focus on sustainable investing (FT)

Fund manager to double number of sustainability-focused exchange traded funds it offers

https://www.ft.com/content/57db9dc2-3690-11ea-a6d3-9a26f8c3cba4

BlackRock has unveiled sweeping changes in an effort to position itself as a leader in sustainable investing after criticism that the company has failed to use its clout to combat climate change. The world’s largest fund manager, with $7tn in assets, will double the number of sustainability-focused exchange traded funds it offers to 150. It will also cut companies that derive a quarter or more of their revenues from thermal coal from its actively managed portfolios, as it aims to increase its sustainable assets 10-fold from $90bn today to $1tn within a decade.

Author: Christopher K. Merker, Ph.D., CFA

Christopher K. Merker, PhD, CFA, is a director with Private Asset Management at Robert W. Baird & Co. and executive-in-residence and co-director of the Marquette S-Lab. He is also founder and chair of the board of Water + Energy Forward, a green bank focused on market-based climate solutions. He holds a PhD in investment governance and fiduciary effectiveness from Marquette University, where he has taught “Sustainable Finance” since 2009. He publishes Sustainable Finance and is co-author of The Trustee Governance Guide: The Five Imperatives of 21st Century Investing.

Twitter Facebook Linkedin