Sustainability and Corporate Governance Report 202
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HOW WE TAKE ACTION TO REDUCE CLIMATE IMPACT – HAN
DELSBANKEN FONDER EU Action Plan – a new regulatory framework for sustainable investment The financial sector has an important role and responsibility for mitigating climate change and contributing to a more sustainable world. To achieve the Paris Agreement goals and sustainable development, the EU has developed an action plan on financing sustainable growth. The action plan contains a series of measures aimed at reallocating capital to sustainable investments, better integrating sustainability Taxonomy The EU taxonomy is a tool for classifying which economic activities are environmentally sustainable. Its purpose is to ensure that companies, the financial sector and decision-makers receive common guidelines on classifying these activities. The framework does not cover all economic activities, but instead focuses on the sectors that account for about 94 per cent of the EU’s greenhouse gas emissions. In the first stage, the taxonomy focuses on the first two environmental objectives, climate change mitigation and adaptation. It will be some time before it also covers the other four environmental objectives. This also means that social aspects, for example, are not yet included in the taxonomy. factors in risk management, and fostering transparency and long-termism. The EU has produced several new and updated regulations that place requirements on how financial players approach and consider sustainability. In 2020 and 2021, we have focused on the following parts of the EU Action Plan. The SFDR disclosure regulation With the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR), which took effect on 10 March 2021, the EU aims to make it easier for consumers to compare financial products and make informed investment decisions. To achieve this, we as asset managers must provide more detailed and comprehensive information when describing sustainability in our funds. Read more about SFDR on page 67. Development of sustainable benchmark indices The EU Action Plan has put tougher requirements on index providers to clearly and publicly report sustainability factors linked to benchmarks. Two types of climate benchmark indices have also been launched, the EU Climate Transition Benchmark and the EU Paris-Aligned Benchmark. The latter provides a completely new framework and common standard for an index for which companies are selected and weighted to align the benchmark portfolio’s greenhouse gas emissions with the Paris Agreement’s climate goals. 27