Toronto-based Integrated Asset Management Corp. (IAM) on Tuesday announced it has become a signatory to the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) initiative, which aims to incorporate environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) issues into the investment decision making and ownership practices of international fund managers.
“We believe ESG factors contribute to the risk in an investment and that effective management of ESG considerations is critical,” says David Mather, executive vice president and chairman of IAM’s ESG committee.
The alternative asset management firm believes that companies that pay greater attention to ESG factors will create more long-term value, he adds.
“Investing in businesses that work actively to reduce or mitigate environmental, social and governance risks, or encouraging businesses in which we invest to do more in terms of ESG, may help reduce the risk of negative surprises and increase the long-term quality of our debt and real estate portfolios,” Mather says.
IAM has approximately $2.4 billion in assets under management (AUM) in real estate, private debt and managed futures.
PRI signatories now have more than US$59 trillion in total AUM, up from US$4 trillion when the initiative was launched in 2006.