Schroders strengthens impact investment focus with launch of Emerging Markets Equity Impact Strategy

Schroders is today announcing the launch of its Emerging Markets Equity Impact Strategy, further strengthening its focus on impact and meeting investors’ growing demands for solutions in this space.

The Schroder ISF Emerging Markets Equity Impact fund will be aligned with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals, with a primary focus on areas encompassing responsible consumption, health and wellness, sustainable infrastructure, inclusion and the environment.

It will be managed by Co-Fund Managers Jonathan Fletcher and James Gotto, drawing on the depth of resources of Schroders Emerging Markets and Sustainability teams. The fund will be supported by Schroders’ proprietary impact measurement tools SustainEx and Carbon Value at Risk. Schroders active ownership and stewardship focuses will also form core parts of the investment process.

This builds on Schroders expanding suite of impact-focused investment solutions, having launched the Schroder ISF BlueOrchard Emerging Markets Climate Bond fund targeting positive environmental change in emerging markets in June, which has already attracted more than $100 million in assets.

The fund unveiled today will follow a long-term, unconstrained and bottom-up investment approach, encompassing 30-50 companies in emerging markets. Its objective is to generate a positive impact in terms of societal contribution as well as an attractive financial return.

This will be achieved by investing in sustainably run companies whose products, services or activities help to address the social and environmental challenges faced by less developed countries. The fund is classified under the EU Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation as Article 9. 

Jonathan Fletcher, Co-Fund Manager of the SISF Emerging Markets Equity Impact Fund, commented:

“Clients’ interest in understanding the impact of their investment decisions has never been greater. Nowhere is this more important than in emerging markets where the social challenges are often significant and where some countries are at greatest risk from the effects of climate change.

“Public companies have a critical role to play in addressing these challenges. Not only through their products and services, but also by the way they manage their operations, who they employ and their impact on the environment.

“Companies in emerging markets are largely at the early stages in their impact and sustainability journey. As active and long term owners this provides an opportunity for investors to have an impact, further increasing the positive impact that the companies have.”

Schroders is a world leader in emerging markets investing with significant exposure across assets classes within emerging markets. The various Emerging Markets investment teams have a total of 145 professionals averaging 15 years of investment experience across 19 locations globally.

Earlier this year, Schroders took another step towards building a leading position in sustainability and impact investments by joining the Global Impact Investing Network.

Read more on why we believe EM is the perfect place for impact investing here.

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