Latest news with #MattChristensen
Bloomberg
3 days ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
AllianzGI Says First ESG Defense Allocations Likely This Year
Allianz Global Investors expects some of its ESG funds to start adding defense holdings in the coming months, as the money manager updates prospectuses to match the political mood in Europe. 'The European view on defense and the need for defense has shifted,' Matt Christensen, global head of sustainable and impact investing, said in an interview in which he alluded to both the war in Ukraine and the need to meet NATO goals.
Reuters
31-03-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Allianz scraps nuclear, military exclusions to back Europe's rearmament drive
LONDON, March 31 (Reuters) - Germany's Allianz Global Investors has dropped two exclusions blocking its sustainable funds from investing in defence, becoming one of the first major European asset managers to change their policies to help finance the region's rearmament. AGI wrote to its clients late last week to advise that its sustainable funds could now buy into companies that earned more than 10% of their revenue from military equipment and services. here. Removal of a second exclusion means they can also now invest in nuclear weapons activities as long as they are within the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, which seeks to stop the spread of nuclear weapons-making capabilities. The investor had recognised the restrictions were too "onerous", said Matt Christensen, AGI's global head of sustainable and impact investing, in an accompanying blog post published online. "Nuclear weapons are a critical and credible deterrent to large-scale conflict and, in Western countries, the production of nuclear weapons is fully integrated into the industry and cannot be separated," Christensen added. AGI, part of insurer Allianz ( opens new tab, manages about 570 billion euros ($615.77 billion) in assets. The changes come amid a broader drive by European investors to reconsider their policies on investing in defence, under pressure from clients and some politicians to loosen restrictions. Funds badged as sustainable have come under particular scrutiny, as they often have stricter exclusions. Few asset managers have actually changed their policies so far. Defence stocks have soared in value this year as European countries, under pressure from U.S. President Donald Trump, have vowed to increase military expenditure, with Germany unveiling a massive ramp-up in defence and infrastructure spending. AGI's changes apply to funds classified as 'Article 8' under the European Union's Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation, and would apply in most cases, the investor said in its letter to clients. Article 8 is the broadest category for sustainable funds under the EU rules, while the higher Article 9 category refers more directly to sustainability. AGI said several exclusions would still apply, including to companies that severely violated international rules and to manufacturers of chemical and biological weapons. ($1 = 0.9257 euros)
South China Morning Post
05-03-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Asia in driver's seat to lead transition finance, AllianzGI says
Asia has potential to become a global leader in transition finance, driven by the region's demand for decarbonising its high-pollution economic sectors, according to money manager Allianz Global Investors (AllianzGI). Advertisement Transition finance allocates capital to companies and activities that are reaching for environmentally friendly or sustainability standards, unlike 'green finance' which focuses exclusively on assets that have fully achieved that status. While Europe had prioritised establishing the green investing market, Asia was making headway in the transition finance market, according to Matt Christensen, global head of sustainable and impact investing at AllianzGI, a unit of German insurer Allianz Group. 'This belief suggests that Asia can not only generate substantial profits but also establish a leadership position that enables its markets to catch up to and possibly surpass those in Europe and the US,' he said last week. Matt Christensen, global head of sustainable and impact investing at Allianz Global Investors. Photo: Handout With standards for green finance becoming more stringent, transition finance offered an opportunity for developing countries reliant on heavy industries to decarbonise their economy. These include high-polluting and hard-to-abate sectors such as steel, aviation and shipping. Advertisement AllianzGI managed €560 billion (US$596 billion) of assets on September 30. The firm, which screens sustainability risks in all its investments, allocated 37 per cent of its assets in sustainable product categories and 16 per cent in assets focused on environment, social and governance (ESG) risks, according to its website.
