Aberdeen Standard Investments launches climate fund range

22/07/2021
Eva Cairns, Head of Climate Change Strategy, Aberdeen Standard Investments

ABERDEEN Standard Investments (ASI) has today announced the launch of a range of climate funds aimed at supporting the shift towards net zero global emissions. Tackling climate change is one of the most pressing issues facing the world. The journey to a net zero global economy will present challenges and opportunities. These are all EU SFDR article 9* funds, each focusing on specific aspects of the journey towards Net Zero, offering investors access to investment opportunities that the global climate transition represents.

The ASI Climate Range provides access to a range of outcomes for clients depending on how they want to allocate their capital in order to drive this change:

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The Aberdeen Standard SICAV I – Global Climate and Environment Equity Fund
Invests in companies that are innovating and providing the solutions that we need to reach Net-Zero.

  • Investing in the companies that will provide solutions to the most carbon intensive sectors of the economy through a thematic framework combined with fundamental analysis.
  • Concentrated portfolio of companies reflecting our highest conviction both in terms of financial returns and climate impact.
  • Dynamic and experienced investment team, benefiting from a broad research base of over 130 equity managers worldwide who are actively engaging with company management on climate issues.

Aberdeen Standard SICAV I – Climate Transition Bond Fund Invests in the leading emissions reducers; companies with credible and ambitious transition plans from high emission sectors and outstanding companies in other sectors. The fund also invests in projects that tackle the physical impacts of climate change, as well as solutions providers who support other parts of the economy to decarbonise through their products or services. The outcome is a portfolio of debt issuers, mitigating the causes and adapting society to the consequences of climate change.

  • Takes global unconstrained approach, which aims to to deliver a compelling total return and high income
  • Investing in the global transition effort towards a low carbon economy and supporting societies adaptation to climate change impacts.
  • Experienced global Fixed Income team of over 130 people, actively managing over €16bn** in dedicated Fixed Income ESG assets.

Aberdeen Standard SICAV II – Multi- Asset Climate Opportunities Fund
Invests in climate solutions such as clean energy, electric vehicles and smart working technologies by investing in equities, bonds and renewable infrastructure. The fund benefits from the high levels of diversification inherent to our multi-asset approach.

  • Aims to generate attractive returns over the long term
  • Invests in a diversified portfolio of equities and bonds issued by companies whose core business is to offer products and services that enable the transition to a sustainable low carbon economy
  • The fund is expected to have a market leading EU Taxonomy score

Eva Cairns, Head of Climate Change Strategy, Aberdeen Standard Investments, said: “Climate change is one of the largest threats of our time and impacts not only future generations, but also many countries and companies around the globe today. Tackling it requires trillions of dollars of investment every year to transform our world into one that emits net zero greenhouse gases. This transformation comes with significant opportunities for investors. To have real world impact, we need to look to the future and invest in the solution providers and companies that will help make this transition to net zero happen.”

The ASI Climate Range will allocate a substantial share of capital to climate solutions, i.e. those which the EU Taxonomy on Sustainable Activities defines as ‘enabling the climate transition’. As a result, all three funds have high EU Taxonomy scores. Furthermore, ASI’s unique climate scenario analysis tool developed in collaboration with the Aberdeen Standard Research Institute, facilitates identification of the companies that we believe will lead through this time of significant transformation.

Eva continues: “Our approach to climate scenario analysis is motivated by the view that a rigorous, forward looking and transparent methodology is essential for embedding climate risks and opportunities into our investment decision making and delivering superior outcomes for our clients. We believe that our bespoke approach represents a significant advancement in the field of climate-scenario analysis, giving us greater confidence in the results and their applicability to real-world investing.”

ASI has taken a proactive role in industry leading climate initiatives having signalled a commitment to the Net Zero aim by joining the Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative. More detail on ASI’s net zero commitments and eight specific climate commitments were published at our 2021 AGM – these underpin our net zero directed investing strategy.

*Article 9 funds are defined as those funds that specifically have sustainable goals as their objective. For example investing in companies whose goal it is to reduce carbon emissions.

**Aberdeen Standard Investments, 31 Dec 2020

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