First Sentier Investors is setting its inaugural nature targets as a Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) adopter.

The nature targets are an extension of the global investment manager’s work in sustainable investing. First Sentier, owned by Japan’s Mitsubishi UFJ Trust, has committed to integrating nature-related dependencies, risks, and opportunities into its corporate reporting by 2025 in alignment with TNFD’s recommendations.

The company has established board oversight and management responsibilities within its environmental, social and governance (ESG) and climate governance structure, trained investment teams on nature since 2022, and disclosed sector-level impacts and dependencies across its listed equities investments in its 2022 and 2023 Responsible Investment Report.

Kate Turner, global head of responsible investment at First Sentier, highlights the firm’s role as a steward of capital.

“These targets are also a natural step forward for First Sentier Investors, since becoming a signatory of the Finance for Biodiversity (FfB) Pledge in 2021. As part of our FfB pledge to set goals to reduce our organization’s impacts on nature and biodiversity, we are pleased to formalize the progress we have made as a business in this area by setting our inaugural nature targets,” Turner says.

First Sentier Investors’ nature targets for 2025 will span three key areas: governance, assessment and training.

Governance: Disclose a clear firm-wide governance structure for nature, outlining board oversight and management responsibilities in an integrated manner with the existing governance structure for broader ESG issues.  

Assessment: Conduct and publicly disclose an assessment of dependencies, impacts, risks and opportunities for in-scope investments (listed equities and corporate bonds).  

Training: All relevant employees will have completed training on the relation between nature loss and investment.  

Joanne Lee, Hong Kong-based responsible investment director at First Sentier, adds: “While these will be initial targets, they set a clear direction for our firm’s future endeavours. They build on the progress that the business has already made in this area and align with the TNFD’s four disclosure pillars.”

“Importantly, we believe in the role that investors play in directing global financial flows away from nature-negative outcomes and towards nature-positive outcomes which aligns with the TNFD’s objective,” Lee adds.

 First Sentier is headquartered in Sydney, Australia with offices in Melbourne, Hong Kong, Singapore, Tokyo and London. It manages US$156.97 billion of assets as of June 30 2024.