New Sustainable Impact Fund Launches

Harbour is delighted to announce the launch of the Harbour Sustainable Impact Fund - a diversified fund designed with the twin goals of generating investment returns and investing for positive impact on people and our planet.

Co-portfolio manager Chris Di Leva says “Responsible investing has entered the mainstream over the past five years, and now impact is the new frontier. Increasingly Kiwis are wanting to invest to make a positive difference to the world, rather than simply avoiding negative impacts”.

Impact investing is a new and evolving area in the Aotearoa New Zealand investment markets, as Kiwi investors increasingly demand investment options which reflect their values and goals.

“Six months of research has gone into exploring global best practice in measuring impact. We selected the UN Sustainable Development Goals as a key metric for the Fund because of their widespread global recognition, and the detail they provide in terms of key indicators for each goal. We’ve invested in a range of tools to measure impact for our investors around carbon footprint calculation, exposure to renewable energy, and alignment of each company in the portfolio to UN Sustainable Development Goals”.

Australasian equities will be actively managed by the Harbour team, investing in companies which we expect will generate a strong return and a positive impact. Bonds and private credit will also be managed by Harbour, including green bonds, sustainability-linked bonds, and bonds of companies we judge to be impact leaders.

For global exposure, the Fund will engage the expertise of industry leaders such as global sustainable funds pioneer Mirova and Harbour’s long term global partner T. Rowe Price. The Fund will also invest in venture capital through partnering with Icehouse Ventures.

“Investors have told us they want to put their capital towards innovative companies that are looking to solve big problems, especially when it comes to clean energy and agriculture. Icehouse has already invested in a number of successful early-stage companies that are making a positive impact on society and have been hugely profitable for investors. This fits with our philosophy of providing access to experts which complement our experienced local team.”

The Fund will be overseen by an expert impact committee, comprised of both senior Harbour staff and independent experts.

Being carbon neutral is another important feature of the Fund. While the Fund has been designed to have a lower carbon footprint than the market benchmark, any carbon contained in the Fund will also then be offset by Harbour, through investment in projects which actively prevent carbon release and contribute to multiple UN Sustainable Development Goals.

The Fund is available for investors with at least $100,000 directly with Harbour. It will also be accessible on InvestNow and new digital platform Flint Wealth, as well as through financial advisers.

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