Sustainability

Climate change, social inequality and environmental degradation can have a material impact on the performance of companies in which asset management companies invest. Accordingly, at BNP Paribas Asset Management, we place sustainability at the heart of our strategy and investment philosophy.

Concretely, we analyse financial and non-financial information to identify investment opportunities and risks, seek to minimise the adverse impacts of our investments, use our influence to help shape a better future, and allocate capital towards companies that are contributing to positive change.

Our sustainability journey began in 2002 with the launch of our first socially responsible investment fund and the creation of our dedicated environmental, social and governance (ESG) research team – the precursor to our global Sustainability Centre.

This long-established commitment to sustainability has given us the strength and expertise to navigate an increasingly challenging investment environment and deliver on our ambition to generate long-term sustainable returns for our clients.

Our approach to sustainability is built on six pillars. It provides a broad and robust framework, recognising that systemic risks, such as climate change or biodiversity loss, cannot be addressed through exclusions or the integration of ESG factors alone.

We believe the optimal economic model can be built on a successful Energy transition, healthy Ecosystems, and greater Equality in our societies – our 3Es. Taken together, these form a pathway to economic sustainability that will enable us, as investors, to safeguard long-term returns.  These themes guide our strategic research, stewardship, responsible business conduct, sustainable thematic investing and CSR approach. They are also reflected in the other pillars of our approach to sustainability, and our roadmaps describe our detailed strategy and targets.

Wherever they operate, we expect companies to meet their fundamental obligations in the areas of human and labour rights, protecting the environment and ensuring anti-corruption safeguards, in line with the UN Global Compact Principles, the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises (OECD MNE Guidelines) and UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs). We aim to engage with companies where they fall short and exclude the worst offenders. We also have a series of sector policies that govern the conditions for investing in sensitive sectors and guide our screening requirements and stewardship activities.

We believe that analysing investments using ESG criteria helps us account for a wider set of risks and opportunities and better understand the role of companies in driving systemic risks and addressing the challenges of the transition towards a more sustainable and inclusive economy. This helps us make better-informed investment decisions in line with our fiduciary duty. We accomplish this through the application of our ESG Integration Principles & Guidelines, and the development of proprietary sustainability research and tools.

We are committed to contributing to a successful energy transition, healthy ecosystems, and greater equality in our societies. We combine voting, issuer engagement and policy advocacy to realise this ambition. Learn more.

We aim to meet different sustainability objectives across a broad range of asset classes. Accordingly, we provide distributors with solutions to meet end clients’ ESG preferences and offer products to invest directly in sustainability, e.g., thematic and impact funds. In addition, our Solutions and Client Advisory team works with clients to build bespoke sustainable portfolios.  

Walking the talk is critical to achieving excellence. As a sustainable asset manager, our corporate practices and disclosures should match or exceed the standards we expect from the entities in which we invest. Over the last five years, we have focused on immersing our employees in a sustainable workplace, one where they can have positive impact through their work, and we encourage them to carry this through to their personal lives.

*CSR: Corporate Social Responsibility