"Tectonic shifts" in the investment landscape "happen faster than I expected," and will accelerate, wrote in a letter to the general director of companies in which Blackrock invests, its leader Larry Fink.
From January to November 2020, the influx of mutual and stock funds, the investment strategies of which are associated with the goals of sustainable development, amounted to $ 288 billion around the world. It is almost twice as much as for the whole of 2019, noted the general director of the largest management company of the world with $ 8.7 trillion assets.
"I am sure that this is the beginning of a long, but quickly accelerating transition, which will manifest itself for many years and radically affects the prices of assets of all types. We know that climate risk is an investment risk. But we also believe that the climatic transition opens historical investment opportunities. "No one will remain asideNot a single company will remain, "on whose business model will not fundamentally affect the transition to the carbon economy," Fink is sure. Therefore, Blackrock will ask the companies in which investing, to provide plans for the information of net gas emissions to zero by 2050. What will happen if they do not do it or will sabotage power transfers, they say in another letter of the Finca addressed to Blackrock clients.
The lack of progress companies will force Blackrock "not only to vote against [their] management on shares in our index funds; In our actively managed funds, these companies will fall into the list for a potential exit of them, as we believe that they will represent the risk for our customers' income. " In companies that will not quickly prepare for the green transition, "business and cost will suffer", because shareholders will lose confidence that they are able to adapt their business models "to the coming dramatic changes", warned Fink.
More than $ 5 trillion from BlackRock is invested in passive funds that track the dynamics of indexes, the rest - in active strategies. Among the active there are Emerging Markets Fund $ 2.67 billion. In it, the share of Russian companies, according to the end of 2020, is 4.76%, including LUKOIL, which is included in the top 10 of investments, - 2, 12%: in money this is $ 127.1 million and $ 56.6 million, respectively.
The Advantage Emerging Markets Fund fund has $ 143.1 million, the share of Russian companies - 3.9%, LUKOIL is also included in the top 10 investments from 1.67%: in money this is $ 5.58 million and $ 2.39 million, respectively . In August 2020, Blackrock launched the same fund (assets - $ 12.7 million), but taking into account the policies of companies in the field of ecology, social responsibility and corporate governance (ESG). Judging by its composition, Russian companies are not very high on the ESG ratio: their share in this fund is much less than in non-specialized, only 1.95%.
Investors-activistsBlackRock is far from the only managing company facing the issuers of decarbonization target. In December, the Pension Fund of the State of New York, the third largest US Pension Fund with assets $ 226 billion, announced: if oil and gas companies do not fulfill its demands, it will get rid of their securities. Last year, Novatek, Rosneft, Surgutneftegaz and Tatneft, were in his portfolios, "Surgutneftygaz" and "Tatneft" (her the foundation has already sent its requirements).
At the same time, with the green investment initiative, Net Zero Asset Managers made 30 leading managers of the world with assets for $ 9 trillion, including Fidelity International, Ax Investment Managers, DWS, Legal & General, UBS, and others. They promised until 2050 or earlier to make their Briefcases are neutral from the point of view of non-net greenhouse gas emissions from companies included in them, as well as maintain investments that contribute to the achievement of zero emissions.
Investors were forced to go to the rather even Exxon Mobil, which insisted that he would continue to increase oil production. Under pressure of investment companies D.E. SHAW GROUP and ENGINE NO. 1 One of the largest oil companies in the world discusses the issue of adding one or more places to the Board of Directors, reducing CO2 investments and emissions and an increase in investments related to sustainable development reported The Wall Street Journal with reference to people familiar with the situation.
Favorable investmentsESG factors already affect the profitability of investments, gave Larry Fink. According to him, in 2020, four of the five global ESG indices were overtaken by the growth rates of traditional indices on which they are based. "From automakers to banks, to petroleum and gas companies, the shares of companies with the best ESG profile are growing faster than competitors, receiving a" premium for sustainable development "," said Fink.
Last year, the ISHARES ESG Aware MSCI USA exchange fund was driven by $ 9.5 billion, according to MorningStar, taking 5th place among all US stock funds on the influx of new funds. By January 26, his assets reached $ 13.38 billion.