Capital Finance International (CFI) has awarded BBVA Asset Management (BBVA AM) the prize for the best global sustainable strategy in 2022. The financial magazine notes the policies that the asset manager has adopted in sustainable matters and that are part of the Sustainability Plan it launched at the end of 2020.
By awarding the prize for the best global sustainable strategy, CFI acknowledges the Sustainability Plan that BBVA Asset Management launched in 2020, which affects the entire fund manager in a cross-cutting manner. This plan aims to incorporate sustainability criteria into the investment process of all managed vehicles. It is based on four pillars, around which this plan has been implemented:
- Commitment to interact with the companies in which it invests, with international organizations and regulators, with other investors and other stakeholders. This commitment can be seen through voting at shareholders' meetings and engagement. In terms of engagement, there has been an expansion of the universe of companies, both in terms of geographic location and the vehicles through which voting rights are exercised.
- Exclusion of certain types of entities. This policy excludes investments in controversial weapons and companies with serious violations of UN Global Compact principles.
- The integration of ESG factors (environmental, social and corporate governance) into the investment process with an internal rating model for portfolio assets. Integration can be translated into the use of extra-financial information in the investment decision-making process. An ESG rating is available for 93% of the portfolio instruments managed at AM Europe, which is factored into investment decisions.
- An impact strategy, with investments in companies aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Sustainable investment solutions have been developed that measure the impact on the SDGs of the companies invested in.
In 2021, BBVA Asset Management joined Net Zero Asset Managers, the initiative launched by a group of international asset managers to support the goal of reducing net greenhouse gas emissions to zero by 2050 or earlier, and the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment, in both cases covering its entire global business.
BBVA AM's current range of socially responsible investment vehicles comprises nine investment funds, six individual pension plans and four social welfare institutions in the Basque Country. The sustainable products managed by BBVA AM represent 8% of its managed assets. In comparison to 2020, they have more than doubled to more than 6.1 billion euros. BBVA AM continues to work on its sustainable products strategy, with the aim of expanding it to cover all types of customer profiles and preferences.