NEST Corporation today announced the fund managers it has appointed for its Ethical and Sharia Mandates, the building blocks for the scheme’s Ethical and Sharia Funds.
 

• NEST’s Ethical Mandate has been awarded to F&C Asset Management.
• NEST’s Sharia Mandate has been awarded to HSBC Global Asset Management.

Tim Jones, NEST Chief Executive, said:

“These latest appointments are excellent additions to NEST’s choice of fund managers. I am delighted that all of our fund managers have such depth of experience in their particular fields. Both of these funds should provide an excellent foundation for helping our members who want to make a choice based on ethical or faith grounds save for retirement.”

Mark Fawcett, NEST Chief Investment Officer, said:

“There was strong competition for these mandates and we’re grateful for the enthusiasm and engagement of fund managers from around the world. Both of the appointed fund managers are global experts in these key areas of fund management for NEST and have excellent track records. I look forward to working with them.”

Cristobal Mendez de Vigo, F&C Group Head of Institutional & Distribution Business Development, said:

“NEST is a landmark initiative that will transform the pensions landscape in the UK. F&C is excited to be working with NEST to bring our expertise in ethical and sustainable investing to its members.”

Stuart White, HSBC Global Asset Management (UK) Institutional Director, said:

“Today's announcement demonstrates that NEST is committed to offering a diverse range of investment solutions that will meet the needs of its members. By selecting the HSBC Life Amanah Fund, managed by HSBC Global Asset Management, members of NEST will have access to a fund that is compliant with Sharia principles and features a proven investment process and track record, along with robust risk management."

Key facts

Ethical Fund  

NEST’s Ethical Fund will initially invest in actively managed and screened global equities, as well as some UK government bonds. This fund of funds will feature a dynamic approach to risk management and asset allocation to deliver a risk/return glide path for the whole of a member’s savings career.

NEST has conducted extensive research into the market for ethical investment as well as our target market’s primary ethical concerns. This has formed our approach and has led us to selecting an equity fund manager that applies a robust approach to screening out companies with poor records when it comes to human rights, the environment and corporate governance, while seeking to generate value by investing in companies with a positive impact on society.

The equity portion of NEST’s Ethical Fund will be invested in the F&C Stewardship International Fund, an actively managed global equity fund.

The Stewardship range of funds are the longest running ethical pooled investment products in the UK.

F&C is a UK listed firm whose sole business is asset management. F&C serves both retail and institutional clients and has a strong track record in providing investment solutions for defined contribution pension schemes.

Sharia Fund  

NEST’s Sharia Fund will invest solely in the HSBC Life Amanah Pension Fund. This fund passively tracks the Dow Jones Islamic Titans 100 index, a global equity index screened so as to be in accordance with Sharia principles.

HSBC Amanah was established in 1998 as the global Islamic financial services division of the HSBC Group. It serves more than 700,000 customers across the world and has assets under management of more than $16 billion.

In the UK HSBC Amanah offers customers a range of financial solutions that are structured so as to be in strict adherence to Sharia Law.

All of HSBC Amanah’s products and operations are overseen by Regional Sharia Committees and a Global Sharia Board. These comprise of Sharia Law scholars with an in-depth understanding of financial products.