Sustainability
What does sustainability mean to us?
The need for sustainable development means that economic systems, as well as financial systems, must change. As a company and as a service partner to our customers, we have two areas of action in which we aim to promote sustainable development.
As a platform, we connect various stakeholders across the asset management value chain and support our clients in integrating sustainability-related requirements into their investment and fund processes.
Our commitment
Our customers, our employees as well as society and environment form the pillars of our sustainable corporate success. Our sustainability strategy addresses the key areas of customers, employees, society and the environment. Corporate goals, customer orientation and employee satisfaction should be in line with social and ecological principles.
As a central platform for institutional investors and fund initiators, the Universal Investment Group is a fundamental building block of the financial industry. To live up to the related high level of responsibility, we have actively committed ourselves to the "Principles for Responsible Investment" (PRI).
This voluntary commitment, developed by the United Nations, aims to increase the incorporation of environmental, social and corporate governance factors in investment decisions. As a fund service platform, the Universal Investment Group has, since its foundation in 1968, deliberately chosen not to engage in its own active asset management.
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Services to support sustainable investing
As an independent fund service platform, we pool the investments of institutional investors such as pension funds, companies and foundations, as well as of fund initiators such as asset managers, banks and investment boutiques. This platform model makes us an ideal partner to accompany our clients on the way to integrating sustainability into their investments and thus also to support the PRI principles, which are more related to active asset management.
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Cooperation and transparency
In addition, we want to promote cooperation in the field of sustainability, create transparency, establish new standards and actively help shape them. The networking and cooperation with other sustainability initiatives is therefore of great importance. Accordingly, the Universal Investment Group is involved in associations and working groups that promote and develop sustainable issues in the financial sector.
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Knowledge exchange and development
We aim to effectively share knowledge and raise awareness of ESG issues in the financial industry, thereby accelerating their implementation and development. The Universal Investment Group defines its own role as an enabler, since its platform links the entire value chain of the asset management industry.
Implementation and responsibilities
Sustainability and corporate responsibility play an increasingly important role in Universal Investments's strategic positioning.
Sustainability in company organisation
Sustainability has also been structurally embedded in the company organisation. Firstly, Robert Bluhm has been appointed as Group Head of Sustainability, whose role is to support the integration of sustainability in all areas of the company and communicate sustainability issues both internally and externally.
Secondly, a Sustainability Office has been established as a separate entity within the company under the leadership of the Head of Sustainability. The Sustainability Office has been set up as an interdisciplinary team, bringing together employees from different departments such as communications, legal, risk, sales and the product and operations divisions.
This approach enables the Universal Investment Group to respond flexibly to the growing demands and to accompany the constant change with the newly created structure.
As independent fund service platform and fiduciary, we ensure the responsible handling of investors' capital and rights. We have co-authored the code of rules of the German fund industry association BVI and comply with the voluntary principles and regulations of the German asset management industry.
Our self-image
Universal-Investment-Gesellschaft mbH, member of BVI Bundesverband Investment und Asset Management e. V., acts in coherence with the mission statement of the German investment fund industry
We are committed to the investors as trustee
In managing the assets entrusted to us, we solely act in the interests of our investors. We pursue their rights independently. We appreciate the governmental oversight over this legal obligation; it differentiates us from other providers of investment products. Our funds are protected against bankruptcy since the funds assets are segregated. They are under the independent control of the respective depository, which is also supervised by a competent supervisory authority.
We are producing benefits for economy and society
We enable access to all investment markets equally to small and large investors. By making investors‘ money available to companies and public sector, we contribute to growth and employment. We are providing suitable solutions for funded pension-schemes. We are promoting the financial education of investors.
In order to implement this mission statement in the ongoing business activities of the fund management companies, the investment fund industry has defined its own self-regulation standards by developing the BVI rules of conduct. These rules are taking account of the role as trustee, which requires a high standard of conduct towards investors.
We want to receive long term investment success
Our success is the success of our investors. Not only convincing return, but also risk diversification and liquidity are very important. We are supporting investor-friendly advice by providing clear and comprehensive information on opportunities, risks and costs.
Excerpt from the BVI Code of Conduct:
"Fund management companies are aware of their social responsibility. They are a separate pillar of the financial sector and are acting in the sole interest of investors, equally and independently of banks and insurance companies. They are managing a huge part of the retirement capital which is invested in retail and special funds. Therefore, fund management companies play a key role in pension provision in Germany. They provide companies with capital for growth and, as buyers of bonds, they are financing public budgets. They create jobs and actively participate in educational initiatives. They participate in the overall social discourse on responsible investment.
Fund management companies manage the funds entrusted to them in accordance with strict legal requirements. They act solely in the interest of investors and observe the integrity of the market, the principle of risk diversification and investment and risk limits when managing the funds. Internal control procedures (e.g. risk controlling, internal audit, compliance) are an integral part of proper business organisation. Fund management companies take arrangements to ensure that they invest the investors funds in accordance with the investment policy described in the sales documentation and the risk profile of the respective fund as well as in accordance with the applicable legal provisions.
In addition to their statutory obligations, fund management companies independently and appropriately take into account the self-regulatory principles and codes set out in the BVI code of conduct which is continuously amended. Fund management companies inform their investors in an appropriate way whether and to what extent they comply with the BVI code of conduct. They may deviate from the code of conduct. In this case, they are required to disclose this on a yearly basis and to justify such deviations (“comply or explain”). This allows the fund management companies to take into account flexible and company-specific needs, as well as investor and investment needs."
We are aware of our social responsibility as a company and fund service platform in managing the assets entrusted to us.
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Society
Social responsibility
Since 2016, we have been supporting projects of the children's and youth organisation "Die Arche e. V. " - in their local initiatives in Frankfurt am Main through donations in kind and cash donations as well as through volunteer work by our employees in helping children from disadvantaged families with their homework.
Ethical responsibility
We screen potential business relationships using an internal blacklist and the Controversial Weapons Monitor. With the help of this specialised database from ISS Governance, companies are identified that are involved in the production of cluster munitions in accordance with the UN Convention. Universal Investment has decided to exclude securities of these issuers from acquisition.
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Environment
One of our goals is to make the climate impact of our business operations measurable. To enable sustainable business operations, we develop a climate strategy and establish a group-wide systematic structure to measure environmental indicators.
The struggle for the best specialists and demographic change are just a few of the issues that also concern us as a company. In times in which corporate success increasingly depends on the availability, competence and commitment of employees, it is becoming increasingly important to attract, retain and develop them.
In doing so, the Universal Investment Group relies on a corporate culture of responsibility and autonomy. This includes the promotion of equal rights and diversity as well as support for the compatibility of family and career, for example through the participation in childcare costs or close cooperation with pme Familienservice in the areas of childcare, homecare eldercare or coaching in life situations.
In addition, by involving our colleagues in our employee development programme, we help them to realise their professional and personal potential.
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