Yahoo Finance – The three largest European asset managers have been praised for voting in favour of a climate resolution at the annual general meetings (AGMs) of five fossil fuel giants.
Amundi, UBS, and Allianz voted for a resolution that requests the board to align its existing 2030 reduction target covering scope 3 – emissions from products sold – with the goal of the Paris Climate Agreement.
The resolution was tabled by activist shareholder group Follow This. Founder Mark van Baal said: “Investors hold the key to tackling the climate crisis with their shareholder voting power at Big Oil. Amundi, Allianz, and UBS use their voting power to mitigate the climate crisis. Most of their peers enable oil majors to continue to cause climate breakdown by voting against climate resolutions.”
“These asset managers vote with their long-term financial interests in mind. These investors are determined to reach Paris because they foresee they will be unable to make a reasonable return on capital if the climate crisis worsens.”
“US and UK investors apparently believe they must choose between profits and climate, but this is a false dilemma construed by the oil and gas industry,” Van Baal said.