SASB Adds Six New Members to Investor Advisory Group

NEW YORK, Dec. 10, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- The Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) today announced another expansion of its Investor Advisory Group (IAG), a group of leading asset owners and managers committed to improving sustainability-related disclosure to investors. Just six months following the addition of 15 new firms to the IAG, six new members have joined the Group, bringing the current cohort to 49 institutional members with over US$34 trillion in assets. 

Barbara Zvan, Chief Risk and Strategy Officer for the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan and Chair of SASB's IAG commented, "Amidst growing calls for a global standard for disclosure of ESG information to investors, the addition of these new members to SASB's IAG is especially significant. With representation from 10 countries, the IAG represents strong international investor support for SASB. Investors are coalescing around the SASB standards because they meet investor needs for comparable, consistent, reliable ESG data that is connected to financial performance."

New IAG members are:

• ATP
• Ivy Investments
• LACERA
• Railpen
• RBC
• ValueAct Capital

"We couldn't be more pleased to see such growing investor support of SASB's work," said SASB CEO Janine Guillot. "SASB's IAG is to thank for much of SASB's recent momentum. Just a year following the codification of SASB standards, over 100 companies domiciled in 15 countries are now using SASB in their communications with investors. SASB's membership program ? the SASB Alliance ? now includes over 100 members. Sixty-five entities are licensing SASB's intellectual property to better integrate ESG considerations into their operations and investment decisions. SASB standards are a foundational element of market infrastructure needed to integrate ESG into investment processes in a rigorous and scalable way."

"Robust and trustworthy data is key to integrating ESG into investment decisions. SASB has taken great strides forward in recent years," noted Ole Buhl, Head of ESG for Danish pension fund ATP. "ATP is glad to join SASB's Investor Advisory Group to contribute with our experience and to show our support for SASB's further development," said Christian Kjær, ATP's Head of Liquid Markets.

"As fundamental active investors, we rely on corporate disclosures to make investment decisions and to effectively engage with company managements," noted Dan Hanson, Chief Investment Officer with Ivy Investments. "Ivy Investments is pleased to support the work of SASB. We believe that market-based disclosure standards for ESG issues that matter to investors can enable us to more effectively serve our clients."

SASB established its Investor Advisory Group in late 2016 to provide investor feedback and guidance for the organization, and to demonstrate investor support for a market standard for investor-focused sustainability disclosure. A total of 49 firms, accounting for more than $34 trillion in assets under management, now serve as IAG members.

In November 2018, SASB published the world's first complete set of 77 industry-specific sustainability accounting standards. SASB's standards enable businesses to identify and communicate performance, on an industry-specific basis, on the sustainability issues likely to matter most to financial performance. SASB's standards are unique in the marketplace due to their industry-specific focus, their emphasis on communicating to investors, and their focus on financial materiality.

About SASB

The Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) Foundation is an independent, nonprofit standard-setting organization that develops and maintains robust reporting standards that enable businesses around the world to identify, manage, and communicate financially material sustainability information to investors. SASB standards are evidence-based, developed with broad market participation, and are designed to be cost-effective for companies and decision-useful for investors. To download any of the 77 industry-specific standards, or learn more about SASB, please visit www.SASB.org.

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SOURCE SASB: Sustainability Accounting Standards Board