Global institutional portfolio management firm, and the world’s largest hedge fund, Bridgewater Associates announced today the launch of a sustainable investing venture, including the design and implementation of investment solutions for clients pursuing sustainability goals alongside their financial targets.
The firm also announced the appointment of Karen Karniol-Tambour and Carsten Stendevad as Co-Chief Investment Officers (Co-CIOs) of Sustainability, with responsibility for overseeing the new sustainable investing venture. Karniol-Tambour has been with Bridgewater since 2006, most recently serving as Head of Investment Research. Stendevad joined the firm in 2017, and oversees the Bridgewater’s business in China.
David McCormick, CEO of Bridgewater, said:
“Sustainable investing is a strategic priority for Bridgewater and for our clients. Understanding the economic impact of environmentalEnvironmental criteria consider how a company performs as a steward of nature., socialSocial criteria examine how it manages relationships with employees, suppliers, customers, and the communities where it operates., and governanceGovernance deals with a company’s leadership, executive pay, audits, internal controls, and shareholder rights. issues has always been crucial to our study of how economies and markets operate, and it is an increasing priority for our clients to achieve financial goals as well as have environmentalEnvironmental criteria consider how a company performs as a steward of nature. and socialSocial criteria examine how it manages relationships with employees, suppliers, customers, and the communities where it operates. impacts in their portfolios. With Karen and Carsten, we are deploying some of our leading investment talent and the power of our systematic investment approach to address these challenges.”
As part of the new launch, Bridgewater has appointed a new Sustainable Investing Committee, responsible for embedding sustainability considerations, as appropriate, into the firm’s investment processes and partnering with clients on their sustainability priorities. The committee will be co-chaired by Karniol-Tambour and Stendevad, with other members including Daniel Hochman, who will serve as Head of Sustainability Research, and Lauren Hardardt, serving as the Chief Operating Officer for the venture.
Karniol-Tambour said:
“SocialSocial criteria examine how it manages relationships with employees, suppliers, customers, and the communities where it operates. and environmentalEnvironmental criteria consider how a company performs as a steward of nature. issues are increasingly important to economies and markets due to their impacts on fiscal and monetary policy, capital flows and investor behavior. In tackling these issues, we are leveraging Bridgewater’s 45 years of experience conducting deep, systematic macro research and converting that understanding into scalable investment solutions for our clients.”
Stendevad added:
“In recent years, we have seen a fundamental shift in the investment community, with the expansion of objectives from risk and return to also include impact. Building portfolios that seek to deliver on both financial and sustainability objectives is not trivial, and requires a rigorous and systematic approach to embedding sustainability throughout the entire investment process. Karen and I are excited to partner on deploying capital in this direction.”
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