The Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) were launched in 2005 with support from the United Nations, spearheaded by the UN Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) and the UN Global Compact. The initiative aimed to encourage the global investment community to incorporate environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors into their decision-making processes to foster long-term, sustainable growth.

Though initially UN-backed, the PRI operates as an independent organisation. Since the PRI establishment, investor expectations around ethical and ESG-focused investments have grown rapidly. Global standards like the Paris Agreement, Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and UN Guiding Principles on Human Rights are now shaping regulations and reporting requirements, both globally and in New Zealand.

As a PRI signatory, Trust Management reports annually on its ethical investment practices, including policies, activities, and engagement efforts supporting PRI goals. These reports are assessed against other global signatories, including some of the largest asset managers worldwide.

Although reporting was optional for PRI signatories this year, Trust Management chose to report voluntarily, reflecting our commitment to ESG practices and our desire to benchmark our performance against industry peers.

We’re proud to share that our scores for the year ending March 2024 highlight leadership in policy, governance, strategy, and ESG integration across asset classes. Improvements were especially notable in how we apply ESG principles to passive fixed income and equity investments through enhanced manager monitoring.

The blue bars in the chart show our scores across modules, while the blue lines represent the global median.

You can explore our full PRI 2024 report in the PRI Full Assessment Report in the link below.