Montréal, July 15, 2014 - Bâtirente, the CSN’s retirement system, and the Fonds de solidarité FTQ both earned a special mention at the Responsible Investor Reporting Awards 2014. Bâtirente stood out for its 2012 Annual Report and the Fonds de solidarité for its 2013 Annual and Sustainable Development Report. These awards recognize the highest standards in the reporting and disclosure of responsible investment activities by asset owners globally. The results were announced at the annual Responsible Investor Europe summit in London on June 4.
The Bâtirente and the Fonds de solidarité reports were both honoured in the “Best RI Report by a Medium & Small Fund” category and as such were the runners up to the winner, Norway’s Folketrygdfondet, a public fund with $27.5 billion under management. “Responsible investing, transparency and good governance are our top priorities,” said Mario Tremblay, vice-president of public and corporate affairs at the Fonds de solidarité FTQ. “We are extremely proud to have received this international recognition, especially considering that most of the other finalists in this category are much bigger organizations in terms of assets under management.”
“The fact that two organizations spawned by Québec’s labour movement stood out from among all these asset managers attests to their commitment to responsible finance and to improving their reporting practices. This is an important recognition that I hope will inspire other Québec and Canadian asset owners. Incidentally, we were pleased to learn that in September, Montréal will host this year’s edition of the global responsible investment conference, PRI in Person,” said Bâtirente general manager Daniel Simard.
What made the reports noteworthy
To select a winner, Responsible Investor and its partner, Responsible Finance Research Charity, research over 1,000 reports, apply a series of objective indicators and filter the reports into a shortlist, split into two categories. A high-level judging panel then ranks the reports.
Bâtirente stood out for its commitment to responsible investing and clear demonstration (examples and benefits) of the processes used to integrate environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria into its investment practices. The judging panel found that the Bâtirente report clearly presented the organization’s financial information, responsible investment practices and performance. It also liked its attractive, effective design and index of ESG issues addressed during the year, which transparently presented portfolio companies with which it engaged on ESG issues.
The Fonds de solidarité FTQ was singled out for the clarity of its reporting and approach to responsible investment, which was found to be original, well executed and fully integrated into its daily operations. The panel highlighted the clear, useful links to the objectives and principles of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) and the United Nations’ Global Compact and Principles for Responsible Investment (UN PRI) espoused by the Fonds de solidarité FTQ. It also found the report convincing and visually attractive thanks to its design and interactive version with easy navigation between key topics. Finally, the judging panel was impressed with the analysis of the Fonds’ past, current and futures objectives, which provides insight into the continuity of its actions.
About Bâtirente
Created in 1987 by the Confédération des syndicats nationaux (CSN), Bâtirente is a retirement system that allows 20,000 workers represented by more than 300 unions to benefit from group retirement plans tailored to their needs. Registered as a financial services firm, Bâtirente offers group retirement consulting services to groups and members. www.batirente.qc.ca
About Fonds de solidarité FTQ
The Fonds de solidarité FTQ helps drive our economy. With net assets of $10.1 billion as of May 31, 2014, the Fonds is a development capital funds that channels the savings of Quebecers into investments in all sectors of the economy to help create and maintain and further Québec’s development. The Fonds is a partner, either directly or through its network members, in more than 2,450 companies. With 613,958 shareholder-savers, the Fonds helps create, maintain and protect more than 172,000 jobs. For more information see www.fondsftq.com
About Responsible Investor
Launched in June 2007, Responsible Investor (RI) is the only dedicated news service reporting on
responsible investment, ESG (environmental, social and governance) and sustainable finance for
institutional investors globally. Responsible Investor also organizes a series of highly successful
conferences focusing on how investors integrate RI and ESG factors into their investment
analysis and decision-making processes. See www.responsible-investor.com
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See the reports:
http://www.batirente.qc.ca/public/files/section-documentation-fr/ra-batirente-2012.pdf
http://www.fondsftq.com/rapport2013
See the list of companies which earned a special mention from the RI Reporting Awards 2014 :
http://www.responsible-investor.com/events/events_page/ri_awards_2014/
Information:
Bâtirente:
Katya Vanbeselaere
514 525-5740, extension 2425 or 1 800 253-0131, extension 2425
Fonds de solidarité FTQ:
Johanne Bissonnette
Senior Public Relations Advisor
Fonds de solidarité FTQ
Telephone: 514 850-4828
Email: jbissonnette@fondsftq.com