European asset manager Amundi has expanded its ESG ETF range with the listing of two additional emerging market products on the London Stock Exchange.
The Amundi MSCI Emerging ex-China ESG Leaders Select Ucits ETF DR and the Amundi MSCI China ESG Leaders Select Ucits ETF DR provide investors with exposure to broad emerging markets ex-China and Chinese equities, respectively.
Both ETFs have been developed and launched in collaboration with asset manager AllianceBernstein.
The ETFs incorporate ESG criteria and are classified as Article 8 under Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR). They will both apply exclusion filters on companies involved in controversial activities including tobacco, weapons, and thermal coal.
There is also a best-in-class approach involved, as the ETFs select the top 50% of companies in each sector by ESG score.
The ETFs have an ongoing charge of 0.35%, which Amundi said represents an “important extension” to its range of ESG ETFs, offering investors cost-effective and sustainable exposure to broad emerging markets and China.
Currently, AllianceBernstein has integrated ESG in over $456 billion of assets under management. The asset manager’s partnership with Amundi has allowed it to add core emerging market equity ESG exposures to meet growing investor demand for sustainable investment.
David Hutchins, portfolio manager of multi asset solutions at AllianceBernstein, said: “Integrating consistent ESG considerations into all of our investments within our multi-asset portfolios, including our target date funds widely used by UK DC plans, is fundamentally important to the way we and our clients think.”
Hutchins added that China should no longer be considered as an emerging market.
“A more sophisticated approach is needed to the world’s second largest economy which increasingly shares little in common with the emerging markets it is often bucketed with,” he said.
© 2021 funds europe
