Top marks from a respected German institution
Raiffeisen Capital Management’s Wealth Management team has had its sustainability-oriented portfolio strategy Raiffeisen VIPnachhaltig 50 assessed by the Germany-based Institut für Vermögensaufbau (IVA), an independent organisation that seeks to promote transparency in and the improvement of financial services for private investors, since 2020. This assessment has always considered the risk-return profile, but has also evaluated the sustainability approach of the portfolio strategy since the end of 2021.
Best possible score for Raiffeisen VIPnachhaltig 50
The two evaluation processes, which are conducted voluntarily every quarter, each yielded the best possible score for the Raiffeisen VIPnachhaltig 50 strategy. This means:
5 stars for the risk-return profile and
5 trees for the sustainability approach upon which the strategy is based.
This sustainability approach is analysed on the basis of data from the three independent research agencies ISS ESG, Refinitiv and CSRHUB, each of which employs a different evaluation methodology.
The Raiffeisen VIPnachhaltig 50 strategy is the most successful of the 30 sustainable product strategies that were evaluated (as of 3/22). According to Dirk Rathjen, Chairman of IVA, none of the other assessed products achieved such a high sustainability score (which is the basis for the tree rating). For investors, the top marks earned by Raiffeisen VIPnachhaltig 50 show that the portfolio is very well suited for investments that take not only financial aspects, but also environmentally and socially beneficial business activities into account.
Raiffeisen VIPnachhaltig
The sustainability-oriented wealth management line of Raiffeisen Capital Management – Raiffeisen VIPnachhaltig – invests solely in funds that base their selection of issuing companies and governments not only on financial potential, but also on environmental, social, and (corporate) governance factors – for example how the companies treat their employees and suppliers. And sustainability-oriented funds from Raiffeisen KAG, which play a special role in these Raiffeisen wealth management portfolios, are also evaluated according to the proprietary Raiffeisen-ESG-Indicator – which makes it possible to measure and assess the sustainability of the investments. If a company does not meet the desired ESG criteria, no investment will generally be made in it.
Double dividend
Past experience has shown that sustainability-oriented and forward-looking investments can generate equivalent returns. Because responsible business practices generally result in a lower level of operational and other risks and can thus have a positive impact on performance. Sustainability often proves to be a quality feature that can boost a company’s rating and healthy growth. Such investments basically deliver a double dividend: a financial one that is subject to the fluctuations on the capital markets, but also a social or environmental dividend. Of course, just like conventional investments, sustainability-oriented investments are also subject to developments on the capital markets, and capital losses cannot be ruled out.
You can read more about the Raiffeisen Fund Forest project here.
Sustainability-oriented wealth management
Sustainability-oriented wealth management is offered in the form of five strategies that differ in their equities allocation – and thus degree of risk – as well as the recommended holding period. And for investments of 1,000,000 Euro or more, the VIPindividual nh variant is an ideal individualised investment solution for private and institutional customers who are seeking to invest in accordance with sustainability criteria.
ESG stands for environment (E), social (S) and corporate governance (G)
The Raiffeisen Kapitalanlage-Gesellschaft m.b.H. continually analyses companies and countries with the help of internal and external research providers. Together with an overall ESG assessment including an ESG risk assessment, the results of the sustainability research are converted into the so-called Raiffeisen-ESG-Indicator, which is based on a scale of 0 to 100. The assessment is made in consideration of the company’s respective branch of business.