Corporate Governance & Engagement Report
Swedbank Robur is the largest fund company in Sweden and an active investor in the market. The new annual report "Corporate Governance & Engagement 2022" presents how Swedbank Robur integrates and works to support and drive sustainability issues, based on its ownership role.
The 2022 report states, among other things, that the fund company:
• Voted at 852 general meetings in 35 different markets.
• Evaluated 400 shareholder proposals.
• Voted for 87% of the share capital.
• Participated in 110 nomination committees, more than any other investor in Sweden.
• Conducted 1692 company dialogues, focusing on children's rights, access to medicines, the climate, chemicals and water.
Swedbank Robur has long established relationships with the companies it invests in in the Swedish market. In recent years, the fund company has also noted that international companies are increasingly contacting them to discuss the development of their corporate governance and to secure support for proposals for upcoming general meetings.
"We are happy to note the increased interest from both large and small international companies. We have, for many years, continuously built up a strong internal competence in the management. We are very positive that companies take initiative to contact us and give us possibilities to inspire others, share our experiences, support and take an active part in driving the companies' sustainability work forward”, says Pia Gisgård, Head of Sustainability and Corporate Governance at Swedbank Robur.
Swedbank Robur highlighted, among other things, the focus on issues related to the climate, children's rights and access to medicines in the in-depth company dialogues in 2022. The fund company was also an active participant in several of the international and national cooperation forums.
"Collaboration is key if we are to make a real difference. We continue to engage and work in the forums and initiatives we are enrolled in. I would particularly like to highlight Finance for Biodiversity Pledge, Net Zero Asset Managers, Climate action 100+ and Global Child Forum”, says Pia Gisgård.
The Global Child Forum was initiated by H.M. The King and H.M. The Queen of Sweden in 2009 as part of their long-standing commitment to children's rights issues. In 2013, the Global Child Forum produced a benchmark index to assess how companies act when it comes to children's rights. Today, this index covers close to 3000 companies globally.
"We think it is important that companies address aspects relating to children's rights in their business. In 2022, we had dialogues with about thirty companies on this issue and asked them to report on how they handle child-related problems, and what goals and strategies they have in place to reduce the risks associated with this”, says Pia Gisgård.
Swedbank Robur also signed two new collaboration initiatives during the year. "Initiative on Hazardous Chemicals", which aims to influence chemical companies around the world to increase reporting on persistent chemicals and seek to phase them out, and the "Valueing Water Finance Initiative", which aims to influence the 72 companies with the highest impact on water in the world to work on achieving the UN's global sustainability goals for water.
More information:
Swedbank Robur Corporate Governance & Engagement Report 2022 (link) (Eng)
Swedbank Robur Sustainability (link)
Contact:
Carina Sesser Nylund, Head of Press and Information, Swedbank Robur, +46 72 230 52 64
Swedbank Robur is a wholly owned subsidiary to Swedbank and active in Swedbank´s four home markets. Swedbank Robur was founded in 1967 and offers more than 80 mutual funds, institutional and discretionary asset management, and management of pension funds. The number of customers is 3 million in Sweden and 1 million in the Baltic countries. Assets under management are approximately SEK 1352 billion (as per Dec 31, 2022). Swedbank Robur’s vision is to become a world leader in sustainable value creation.