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There has been a growing feeling among investors that sustainability is good – certainly not bad – for returns. Now, following the latest report by Sustainable Platform, there should be no further argument. The analysis, which includes rankings of the top 1,000 performing companies globally, as well as the bottom 1,000, shows that on a…

Ian Silk, AustralianSuper’s powerhouse former chief executive officer, will join KPMG part-time as the firm broadens its focus on ESG solutions. Ian Silk will join KPMG as a special advisor, working on ESG issues as part of the firm’s “reinvigorated plans to help clients embrace the greater focus on ESG responsibilities” as well as on…

Boutique fund manager Pella has nabbed a trio of high-profile names for its advisory board as the ex-Pengana crew shop their proposition to the institutional market. Debbie Alliston, former chief investment officer for AMP Capital’s Multi-Asset Group and head of portfolio management, has joined the advisory board of Pella Funds Management. Alliston was with AMP…

It’s all coming up roses for the asset class, which is set to benefit from rising inflation and global spending programs. A boom delayed is still a boom. The delta variant stymied reopening plans and the fiscal stimulus expected to accompany them, but listed infrastructure investors will breathe easier as government spending finally goes ahead….

In a positive sign for diversified global managers, the dual-listed Ninety One has reported a turnaround in fund flows and a big increase in profits following strong returns in the past six months. The company said in London last week (November 16) that net inflows of £3.9 billion sterling (A$7.2 billion), taking total assets under…

Even the strong trend towards ESG investing, overlaid with heightened interest in climate-related strategies, has failed to halt the decline in funds management fees. The latest biennial study by global mandate search and research consultancy bfinance shows that fee compression has caught up with global ESG equities over the past five years, the average mandate…

Apex Group, the global administrator and fintech which last month took the reins at Australia’s Mainstream, has notched up another, more eclectic, milestone, mixing ESG with cricket. Apex, which has a strong West Indian connection through the domicile of its chief executive and founder, Peter Hughes, became the ‘Official Sustainability Partner’ for the West Indies…

Big Australian investors have never been very fond of taking geographical bets in their portfolios. Just ask a marketing person about selling Asia ex-Japan, for instance; even in the ‘Asian Century’. There are good reasons for why they shouldn’t, the main one being that geographies limit an investor’s universe. A good investment is a good…

The world’s largest state-owned funds have accelerated their allocations to renewables and lifted their targets for net-zero portfolios but, so far, their investments have been “miniscule”, according to the latest report by Global SWF. In a special edition of its monthly newsletter coinciding with this month’s COP26 meeting, the institutional investment research firm calculates that…

AMP Capital will continue in a A$29 billion investment management gig with Resolution Life after selling down its stake in the insurer last week. According to an AMP spokesperson, there has been “no change to the [Resolution] mandate for AMP Capital” post the agreement to offload its over 19 per cent holding in the life…

Ben Phillips has left Casey Quirk, the specialist funds management consulting arm of Deloitte, after 13 years with the business. He has taken a role blending new technologies with investment data on a grand scale. The role, as head of asset management for ‘Global Advisory Services’ with fintech giant Broadridge Financial Solutions, aims to build…

An investor wish list shows how much we’re getting wrong. But it’s a long road to getting things right. One on one, big investors are usually loathe to suggest that governments could be doing more on decarbonisation, regardless of how true – and obvious – that statement is. Allow them to comment anonymously and that…