The Responsible Investment Association (RIA) indicates in its latest annual report, published Friday, that it plans to increase its advocacy work in the coming year.
Last year, the RIA participated in the Canadian Securities Administrators’ (CSA) consultation on proposed client-focused reforms. Those reforms would embed “best interest” principles in several existing CSA rules, such as “know your client” (KYC) and suitability requirements and conflict-of-interest rules.
As part of that consultation, the RIA notes, it advocated for bolstering KYC requirements to include collecting information on clients’ environmental, social and governance (ESG) preferences.
This year, the RIA says that it intends to follow up with securities regulators on its recommendations.
To date, the CSA has not formally responded to the extensive feedback has it received on the proposed reforms from a wide range of industry and investor voices.
Additionally, the RIA says that it will be forming a “policy advisory council” to help the group with other advocacy opportunities.
The report says that, alongside the increased policy work, the RIA intends to “increase its outreach to asset owners and investment consultants to further drive the adoption of RI in Canada’s institutional market.”
“It is important for us to engage with these key decision-makers driving the allocation of capital towards [responsible investment],” the report states.
“I believe the investment industry is entering a new era. The rise of responsible investing is not a trend; it’s a paradigm shift,” the group’s CEO, Dustyn Lanz, indicates in the report. “But the journey is far from over, and I look forward to working with RIA members to further drive the adoption of responsible investing in Canada’s retail and institutional markets.”