Sustainability

We believe that the privilege of investing your capital carries with it a responsibility to try to secure a sustainable future.

Our purpose is to invest for a better tomorrow

We do this by building a better firm, by trying to invest in a better way and, by doing so contribute to a better world.

We are committed to being responsible stewards of our clients’ capital and delivering sustainability with substance. Our Sustainability, Stewardship & Engagement Report updates you on our work over the past year across our ecosystem: our investments, advocacy and direct corporate footprint.

Investments involve risk; losses may be made.

Read our Sustainability, Stewardship & Engagement Report

Our sustainability evolution

Development, learning and ongoing improvement are the common elements in our sustainability evolution.

The first phase of our approach to sustainability and ESG integration within investments, which we termed ‘ESG 1.0’ and which ran to 2019, established a common understanding of ESG and stewardship at the firm.

We defined the next phase as Sustainability 2.0, a key feature of which was that the investment teams became fully responsible for addressing and embedding ESG analysis in their processes. Monitoring and support was provided by the Sustainability team and the Investment Risk function. 

2011

ESG 1.0

Common understanding of ESG

  • Building awareness
  • Central team
  • Stewardship Policy
  • Proxy Voting Guidelines

2019

Sustainability 2.0

Investment teams take primary responsibility

  • Sustainability team is the overarching custodian
  • Execution is by the investment teams

2022

Sustainability 3.0

Alignment and execution

  • Coherent firm-wide approach
  • Putting money to work to extend real impact
  • Developing additional sustainable strategies

Our approach to sustainability

Invest, Advocate, Inhabit

Ninety One’s sustainability framework has three core components:

Invest

Sustainability analysis is integrated across our investment strategies. We also offer sustainable investment solutions.


Advocate

We seek to lead the conversation where we can make a difference and offer expertise on important sustainability topics.


Inhabit

We believe change starts at home. We run our business responsibly and act sustainably

Through Invest, we integrate the assessment of ESG risks into our portfolios by deepening our understanding of externalities and improving our analysis and assessment of the risk they present; we engage with our companies to drive real-world change; and we seek to increase our allocation to sustainable strategies that invest in companies doing the most to increase their positive impact on the world.

Through Advocate, we seek to raise awareness of the need to fund the net-zero transition in a fair and inclusive way, particularly in emerging markets.

Through Inhabit, we work to improve the sustainability of our operations, and to support charities and community projects that are important to the team at Ninety One.

Across Invest, Advocate and Inhabit, we seek to align behind the purpose and culture of our business: to do the right thing. By doing the right thing, we believe we can deliver the best outcomes for our clients, our people and the planet.

Learn more about Invest, Advocate, Inhabit