KENANGA INVESTORS LAUNCHES WORLD QUALITY ESG FUND

The Kenanga Sustainability Series: World Quality ESG Fund seeks to provide capital growth for investors.

Kuala Lumpur, 6 September 2022: Kenanga Investors Berhad (”Kenanga Investors”) has announced the launch of the Kenanga Sustainability Series: World Quality ESG Fund (“Fund”). The Fund seeks to provide capital growth by investing in the NT World Quality ESG Fund (“Target Fund”) managed by Northern Trust Asset Management.  

The Target Fund aims to deliver long-term capital growth by investing in securities which exhibit quality and have favourable ESG characteristics, and excluding securities that do not meet certain ESG criteria. 

“The Fund is one of the highlights of our 2022 roll-outs, and is something we have been working closely on with Northern Trust Asset Management for a substantial part of the year. We are excited to expand our range of solutions to investors that can assist them in diversifying their investment risks and returns, thus allowing them to navigate various market conditions, all while investing responsibly. The Fund adopts a unique “Doing Good, Doing Well” approach which emphasises profitability and sustainability by targeting companies that are ESG leaders and have robust financial fundamentals. The holistic integration of sustainability alongside financials challenges the notion ‘ESG investing compromises performance’ and research shows that investing in high quality and high ESG leads to improved risk-adjusted returns. Quality and ESG, taken together, can best be understood as two dimensions of the same underlying theme: sustainability. Ultimately, a sustainable company is one that produces strong results when measured using traditional financial measures as well as ESG related information”, says Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer, Ismitz Matthew De Alwis.  

According to Northern Trust Asset Management’s Head of Asia Pacific, John McCareins, the target fund’s strategy integrates both financial and pre-financial indicators. 

“We believe material environmental, social and governance factors are pre-financial indicators that can affect a company’s future financial viability and clients’ long-term risk-adjusted investment returns”, he says.
“We seek out high quality companies that are ESG leaders, these companies have relatively low carbon emissions, are highly profitable and have strong cashflows.  By evaluating companies’ performance using ESG criteria enhances our forward-looking view of risks and opportunities. This analysis bolsters our ability to future-proof portfolios and grow clients’ capital”, he says. 

With presence around the globe, Northern Trust Asset Management is a leading global investment manager with over three decades of managing socially responsible portfolios through a multi-dimensional approach of integrating sustainable investing objectives, investment acumen and stewardship for long-term value creation. 

The strategic partnership between Kenanga Investors and Northern Trust Asset Management has seen an uptick in impact investing efforts from the local asset and wealth manager. The Fund is the second product launched in partnership with Northern Trust Asset Management following the Kenanga Sustainability Series: High Yield Bond Fund which was introduced in March this year. It is also the third in a series of ESG-centric funds which began with the launch of the Kenanga Sustainability Series: Frontier Fund in 2021. The Kenanga Sustainability Series is a suite of multi-asset class products rooted in sustainability considerations to advance long-term financial growth for investors and to generate social and financial value for surrounding communities.  

In January of this year, both Kenanga Investors and Northern Trust Asset Management were recognised by Asia Asset Management’s 2022 Best of the Best Awards for their achievements in SRI and ESG policy integration and execution: Kenanga Investors was named Malaysia Best Impact Investing Manager and Best Application of ESG (ASEAN) while Northern Trust Asset Management won Best Application of ESG (APAC) and Best ESG Manager in Asia.  

Benchmarked against the MSCI World Index, the Fund is suitable for Sophisticated Investors who seek capital growth through exposure across developed market equities, have a medium to long term investment horizon and are able to withstand medium to high volatility. It has a minimum initial investment amount of RM5,000 and USD1,000.  

For more information about Kenanga Investors Berhad, please visit www.kenangainvestors.com.my. 

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