Latest news with #responsibleinvestment
Forbes
30-05-2025
- Business
- Forbes
How Institutional Investors Are Ramping Up Climate Investments In 2025
In today's investment landscape, large institutional investors are increasingly matching capital with a clean energy future. A recent Mercer Investment study of 74 large asset owners-- with more than $2 trillion in assets--found that 70% now integrate responsible investment goals into their strategies, a seven percentage jump from last year. Despite shifting rhetoric in some corners of the market, momentum continues to build. The Mercer study underscores this powerful trend—a growing majority are not only setting clear responsible investment goals, they're also increasing how much they allocate to those investments. Responsible Investment Goals Now Central to Portfolio Strategy From New York to Oregon to Ontario, asset owners-- the investors that include pension funds, endowments, insurers, sovereign wealth funds, and wealth managers--are making clear that managing climate risk and seizing investment opportunities are central to long-term fiduciary duty. In 2025, that's translating into investors pouring more capital into climate solutions at scale, reporting progress on portfolio emissions, and supporting public policies that enable a future-ready economy. Major Pension Funds Raise Expectations for Asset Managers Across North America, public officials and investment leaders are raising the bar for themselves-- and the asset managers they do business with. In April, New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, who oversees the city's pension funds, laid out clear transition plan expectations for investment managers. Asset managers working with the New York City Employees Retirement System, the Teachers Retirement System, and Board of Education Retirement System must deliver credible, detailed transition plans—or he would recommend putting those managers' investment mandates out to bid. Highlighting the financial stakes for states and the public funds they manage, Maryland's state comptroller released a report in April on how inaction on extreme weather issues is straining the state's economy and budget. Economic impacts include workforce disruptions, agricultural losses, tourism declines, supply chain disruptions, infrastructure damage, and loss of essential services. And underscoring the critical role of policy advocacy in helping asset owners meet their fiduciary duty, Oregon State Treasurer Elizabeth Steiner backed state legislation introduced in January to strengthen the Treasury's ability to manage risks. The bill supports the Treasury's ability to pursue the near- and long-term investment strategies needed to reduce climate-related investment risks and protect the Oregon public employee retirement fund. Momentum is also strong north of the border. In February, a group of Canadian asset owners representing CAD 53 billion issued a call for the country's financial institutions to stay committed to their net zero goals and to translate them into robust action plans--essential for maintaining a competitive and stable financial system. The consequences of wavering on climate action are also becoming increasingly tangible. European Investors Reconsider U.S. Exposure Major European investors are reassessing their exposure to U.S. asset managers amid concerns about declining policy certainty and a perceived erosion of leadership in the clean economy. Dutch pension fund PME, which manages €57 billion, is reviewing a €5 billion mandate with BlackRock following its exit from a key responsible investing group. Meanwhile, Amundi, Europe's largest asset manager, noted last month that clients have 'massively repositioned' to avoid U.S. markets, driven by unease over inconsistent clean economy policy signals and other geopolitical concerns. The message from institutional investors in 2025 is clear: climate strategy is foundational to fiduciary duty. As stewards of long-term capital, asset owners are not just adapting to a changing world; they're shaping it.
National Post
29-05-2025
- Business
- National Post
Dynacor Receives Positive ISS Recommendation FOR All Director Nominees and Meeting Resolutions at the Annual Meeting of Shareholders and Provides Corporate Updates
Article content ISS is a leading provider of corporate governance and responsible investment solutions, voting recommendations and fund services for institutional investors and corporations. Dynacor provides corporate updates and information about matters related to the company's annual meeting of shareholders scheduled for June 17, 2025. Shareholders who have questions or need assistance with voting can contact Dynacor's proxy solicitation agent, Laurel Hill Advisory Group at 1-877-452-7184 or assistance@ Article content Article content MONTREAL — Dynacor Group Inc. (TSX: DNG) ('Dynacor' or the 'Corporation'), is pleased to announce Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. (' ISS '), a leading independent proxy advisory firm, recommended the Corporation's shareholders vote FOR all of the resolutions that will be put forth at the Corporation's annual meeting of shareholders (the ' Meeting '), scheduled for June 17, 2025 at 10:00 a.m. (Eastern Time). Dynacor is also providing corporate updates below to apprise shareholders of its value-enhancing initiatives, provide clarity about its business model, and to redress the misconception that it is a conventional gold mining company. Article content Shareholders can attend the virtual Meeting at The password to enter the meeting is dynacor2025. Article content Dynacor's 2025 AGM Matters Article content iolite Capital Ltd. (' iolite ' or the ' Dissident '), called a special meeting of shareholders on April 16, 2025 (the ' Requisitioned Meeting '). At the Requisitioned Meeting, shareholders overwhelmingly voted AGAINST iolite's resolution to increase the Board's size to nine directors and AGAINST iolite's nominee for election to the board. Article content Following the defeat of iolite's resolutions at the Requisitioned Meeting, Dynacor received an advance notice submission ('ANP') from iolite to nominate a director to Dynacor's board at the Corporation's annual meeting of shareholders on June 17, 2025. Dynacor is not legally required to include this nominee in its circular. As is standard with ANPs, the Dissident is required to issue an information circular and a form of proxy to Dynacor's shareholders to solicit support for its nominee. Article content After Dynacor received the ANP, the Board's Governance, Nomination and Compensation committee reviewed the candidate's qualifications and concluded his skills and experience were not additive to the Board due to the following: Article content The Dissident's nominee served on three boards of companies that were involved in bankruptcy proceedings: The nominee has served on the boards of three companies that became subject to insolvency or bankruptcy proceedings while he was acting as director or within one year of ceasing to act in that capacity. Experience not in Dynacor's core business: The majority of the nominee's board experience is with tin and titanium mining companies. The Dissident nominee also has no experience in Latin America, no familiarity with the artisanal gold mining sector, and offers no experience with complex ecosystems requiring high -level compliance. Pre-existing history with iolite: The nominee has a pre-existing history with the Dissident. They collaborated in August 2024 when the iolite nominated him as one of three people to be elected to the board of Bowen Coking Coal. This was the Dissident's first proxy contest. Directors should be independent – their duty is to all shareholders. Article content In their reports issued for the Requisitioned Meeting, ISS and Glass Lewis & Co. LLC (Glass Lewis), independent proxy advisory firms, recommended Dynacor shareholders to vote FOR management's nominees. Both highlighted the unnecessary pressure applied by the Dissident and the fact that the Dissident has not made a compelling case for changes on the Board. In particular, Glass Lewis recommended voting AGAINST iolite's representative due to his lack of detail and analysis, and his short-term perspectives. Article content Dynacor reaffirms its commitment to maintain the same long-term approach to shareholder value creation that has buttressed its enviable record of growth to date. It thanks shareholders for their support and invites them to vote for the Board nominees who have shepherded the Corporation's success to date. Article content At the Meeting, Dynacor's shareholders will vote on the following resolutions: Article content YOUR VOTE IS IMPORTANT. PLEASE VOTE TODAY The proxy voting deadline is on Friday, June 13, 2025 at 10:00 a.m. (Eastern Time). Article content The board of directors of Dynacor Group Inc. unanimously recommends that shareholders VOTE FOR all the director nominees and proposed resolutions, using only the GOLD form of proxy or voting instruction form. Article content We encourage our shareholders to read the Corporation's management information circular (the ' Circular ') dated May 14, 2025 in detail and cast their votes prior to the proxy voting deadline. The Circular is available under Dynacor's profile on SEDAR+ at and on the Company's website at Article content To be able to participate, interact, ask questions and vote at the Meeting, you must have previously acquired the 13-digit proxyholder control number or previously appointed yourself as proxyholder on the voting instruction form or online as applicable. Otherwise, you will only be able to attend as a guest. Article content The following steps apply to shareholders who wish to appoint a proxyholder other than the persons whose names already appear as proxyholders in the form of proxy or voting instruction form, including non-registered shareholders who wish to appoint themselves as proxyholder to attend, participate or vote at the Meeting. Article content Step 1: Appoint your proxyholder. Insert your proxyholder's name (or your own name of you wish to attend, vote and participate in the meeting as a proxyholder) in the blank space provided in the voting instruction form or online before 10:00 a.m. (Eastern Standard Time) on June 12, 2025 and follow the instructions for submitting such voting instruction form. Article content Step 2: Register your proxyholder, as described below. Article content Board Focus on Long-Term Value Generation Article content Dynacor's current board (the 'Board ') and management team (' Management ') are committed to creating long-term value for the Corporation's shareholders through producing responsibly sourced gold from steady-state operations in Peru, building local wealth, expanding the Corporation's international footprint, and deepening its relationships with stakeholders. Article content The Board has successfully steered Dynacor through the Corporation's start-up to scale-up periods, methodically transforming its culture, overseeing tremendous shareholder value creation and positioning it for international growth. From June 20, 2017 when Mr. Pierre Lépine was appointed chair of the Board, through May 27, 2025, Dynacor has been an outperformer, delivering shareholder returns of 159%. This compares favourably with the 73% returns provided by the S&P TSX Composite index and the 143% return by the S&P 500 index in the same period. Recently, Dynacor received sector-agnostic recognition through its inclusion in the TSX30 2024, a ranking of top-performing stocks on the TSX over a 3-year period. Article content Under the guidance of the Board, the seasoned Management team has maintained a stellar track record, highlighting the long-term strength of its business model, its ability to navigate tough jurisdictions, lay the foundations for growth, and return capital to shareholders over the past decade. Notably, the Corporation has: Article content Maintained and grown stable profitability over the past 14 years, growing EBITDA by a 15% CAGR. Maintained a strong, clean balance sheet with $59M in cash and short-term investment, no debt, and a simple capital structure. Used its consistent and predictable income to reward shareholders through dividends and share buybacks – On an annualized basis, the Corporation is currently paying a ~3.36% dividend. Carried out in-depth groundwork to expand its proven, successful model into new jurisdictions using the same consistent approach that has defined Dynacor's exceptional trajectory. As the artisanal mining sector is generally uncharted territory, proprietary research takes time. Posted a record 2024 year including record operating cash flow, cash gross operating margin, sales, net income, EBITDA and ore processed. Continued growth and achievement in a rapidly changing and challenging business environment including COVID-19; market reticence towards artisanal miners; difficulty accessing financing due to the company's novel business model; multiple gold price cycles; the ramp-up and multiple expansions of the Veta Dorada plant; and formalization of the Peruvian artisanal mining sector. Article content Dynacor takes a two-pronged approach to driving long-term and sustainable shareholder value creation: international expansion into new, carefully selected countries, and optimization of its operations. Article content Under its international expansion plan, the Corporation's goal of producing 500,000 ounces of gold by 2030 is aligned with its prudent financial and operational management approach. Dynacor's expansion plan: Article content builds on the extensive foundational work and relationships already established in the regions selected for our expansion projects; de-risks its entry into Africa through construction of a test pilot plant in Senegal; leverages the streamlined workforce in Peru and newly recruited management in Montreal with African and specialist experience, all of which to support future growth; and is based on commissioning one processing plant annually. Article content In particular, the expansion of Dynacor's management team is a game-changer that has underwritten disciplined and timely execution of its expansion to date and provides a succession plan to Dynacor shareholders. Article content On the optimization front, Dynacor has launched and is accelerating operating efficiency initiatives at its plant in Peru to improve productivity, efficiency and gold recoveries. The optimization measures include automated addition of chemical reagents, reduced consumption of water through thickeners; an ERP system; and improved layout of new tailings, which are included in the 2025 capital expenditure plan for Peru. Once realized, the measures are expected to enhance productivity, primarily impacting 2026. In parallel, the Corporation has refreshed its workforce in Peru and in Canada, positioning it strongly for its international expansion. Article content Dynacor – An Industrial Company, Not Your Run-of-the Mill Junior Gold Producer Article content Although it mills gold sourced directly from artisanal gold miners, Dynacor's core business is neither gold mining nor gold exploration. Below, we include some key differentiators between Dynacor and junior gold mining stocks, to help dispel misconceptions and counter the misrepresentation of Dynacor as a gold mining company: Article content Dynacor is peerless – Due to Dynacor's unique business model and industry positioning as an ore processor, it has no publicly listed peers. The closest comparisons to Dynacor can be broken down into two groups: Canadian industrial firms and mining services firms. However, neither is perfectly related to Dynacor. As it is not a gold mining company, Dynacor's stock price has never tracked junior gold indexes. This year is no exception. Despite a reduced stock market performance in the last four months occasioned by a contested meeting of shareholders on April 16, 2025 and uncertainty related to the threat of additional proxy contests, the Dynacor share price has outperformed the S&P TSX Composite Index from the beginning of the year to current date. Since 2017, DNG has delivered shareholder returns of 159% compared to GDXJ's 97% returns. Dynacor offers stability – DNG is much less volatile than junior gold mining stocks as it has no exposure to mining or exploration risk. Dynacor's costs vary – Unlike mining companies with operational costs that are relatively stable, DNG's costs vary on a daily basis. This is because the bulk of its costs relate to the daily purchasing of ore. Gold ore is bought at a discount to the spot price on the day of purchase, and the ensuing inventory is generally sold 10-15 days later. DNG offers short stretches of exposure to the gold price – As DNG's only exposure to t he gold price is during this 15-day average inventory turnover, it offers a natural hedge or a proxy to the gold price. The Corporation buys and processes ore on an ongoing basis- the inventory volume and unit price are not static throughout the quarter. Even if the gold price goes up by 26% in the quarter, inventory gains will not rise by the same percentage. The Corporation's margin is impacted positively or negatively by the difference in the gold price at the time of buying and selling. The limited exposure to the gold price explains why DNG has significantly lower beta to the gold price than junior gold companies. DNG margins depend on the path of the gold price – Given its ever-evolving inventory, the Corporation's margins benefit most from slow, steady improvements in the gold price compared to a single, large sharp increase in the price. Article content About Dynacor Article content Dynacor Group is an industrial ore processing company dedicated to producing gold sourced from artisanal miners. Since its establishment in 1996, Dynacor has pioneered a responsible mineral supply chain with stringent traceability and audit standards for the fast-growing artisanal mining industry. By focusing on fully and part-formalized miners, the Canadian company offers a win-win approach for governments and miners globally. Dynacor operates the Veta Dorada plant and owns a gold exploration property in Peru. The company plans to expand to West Africa and within Latin America. Article content The premium paid by luxury jewellers for Dynacor's PX Impact® gold goes to Fidamar Foundation, an NGO that mainly invests in health and education projects for artisanal mining communities in Peru. Visit for more information. Article content Certain statements in the preceding may constitute forward-looking statements, which involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, performance, or achievements of Dynacor, or industry results, to be materially different from any future result, performance or achievement expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. These statements reflect management's current expectations regarding future events and operating performance as of the date of this news release. Article content Article content Article content Article content Article content Contacts Article content For more information, please contact: Article content Ruth Hanna Director, Investor Relations T: 514-393-9000 #236 E: investors@ Website: Article content Article content Article content
The Independent
20-05-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Cambridge college to cut ties with arms companies following student protests
A University of Cambridge college has announced it will divest from arms companies following student protests. King's College said on Tuesday that its governing body has voted to 'adopt a new responsible investment policy' to align with the values of its community. It comes after pro-Palestine protesters staged demonstrations and set up encampments against the war in Gaza at Cambridge University last year. Student-led group Cambridge for Palestine has been calling on the university to divest from companies 'complicit in the ethnic cleansing of Palestine'. Under the new policy, King's College's financial investments will exclude companies that are involved in activities 'generally recognised as illegal or contravening global norms, such as occupation'. It will also exclude companies which produce military and nuclear weapons, weapons restricted by international treaty, or companies that produce key or dedicated components of such weapons. The policy builds on discussions about the relationship between the college's investments and its values, which were 'prompted by the occupation of Ukraine and Palestinian territories'. Gillian Tett, provost of King's College, said: 'This is a positive result from a process that engaged voices from all areas of our community. 'I commend the members of the working group for their incredibly thoughtful engagement and deep commitment to work towards an approach that reflects the College's values and demonstrates our capacity to model transformation.' King's College said the next steps will be to implement the changes across the college's investment portfolio in the coming months, with an aim to complete no later than the end of the calendar year. Student activist group King's Cambridge 4 Palestine (KC4P) said: 'King's College's decision must trigger global condemnation of Israel's actions against the Palestinian people.' Stella Swain, youth and student officer at the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, said: 'This is a massive victory, and speaks to the incredible power and commitment of student campaigning, at King's College and across the country. 'If King's College, at the heart of Cambridge, can finally listen to its students and divest from the arms industry and companies complicit in the illegal occupation of Palestine, then every university can act to ensure they are on the right side of history.'
