Sustainability practices of the world’s largest asset owners
UNCTAD has been monitoring the sustainability integration and performance of the world’s top 100 asset owners since 2020, in terms of both their investment strategy and reporting.
The monitoring focuses on public pension funds (PPFs) and sovereign wealth funds (SWFs): 70 PPFs and 30 SWFs, which collectively owned $24 trillion of assets under management (AUM) in 2023.
As the world’s largest asset owners with long-term pools of capital whose investment horizons and interests are often aligned with public policy objectives, these funds are in a unique position to effect changes in sustainability integration.
In 2023, 58 funds published an ESG/sustainability report or reported significantly on sustainability in their annual report, accounting for 80% of global PPF and SWF AUM. A significant minority (42 funds) do not report on sustainability integration, including funds from both developing and developed economies.
For a full analysis of the findings, see Chapter 3 of the UNCTAD World Investment Report 2024.