NH Amundi Asset Management Launches '100-Year Company Green Korea Fund'

[Asia Economy Reporter Minji Lee] NH-Amundi Asset Management announced on the 7th that it launched the ‘NH-Amundi 100-Year Company Green Korea Fund,’ a domestic equity ESG product that invests in companies with a focus on environmental investment and ‘sustainable growth potential,’ on the 3rd. The fund also attracted investment capital of 40 billion KRW with the support of the NongHyup Group.

ESG investment is an investment approach that reflects non-financial factors of companies such as Environment, Social, and Governance. It is a broader concept encompassing existing Socially Responsible Investment (SRI) and governance funds. Interest in eco-friendly investment has greatly increased amid the COVID-19 pandemic and severe climate change. Recently, with the government announcing the ‘Korean New Deal Comprehensive Plan’ centered on eco-friendliness, the shift in investors’ perception toward expecting sustainable growth is expected to accelerate further.

This fund focuses intensively on the green (environmental) theme within ESG, where improvement and growth potential are becoming visible. It plans to invest in the electric vehicle industry, which is expected to accelerate market growth due to strengthened carbon emission regulations, and the healthcare industry, which has high mid- to long-term growth potential from a social perspective. Additionally, companies related to 5G, secondary batteries, hydrogen and electric vehicles, and wind power, which are expected to benefit from the government’s New Deal policy emphasizing green (environment) and digital sectors, will mainly be included in this fund.

To this end, NH-Amundi Asset Management developed its own ESG evaluation methodology over the past year. It also considered Amundi’s evaluation methodology, which represents ESG investment in Europe. Furthermore, it introduced a benchmark evaluated by global standards to complement the limitations of external ESG evaluations. A representative from NH-Amundi Asset Management said, “The MSCI KOREA ESG Universal Index discloses more detailed evaluation content than domestic indices and allows comparison with similar global companies,” adding, “Since the Equity Research Division oversees ESG research, unexpected variables will be promptly reflected.”

NH-Amundi Asset Management plans to allocate 20% of the 0.5% management fee to a fund supporting social contribution activities and public interest projects. Baeyoung Hoon, CEO of NH-Amundi Asset Management, stated, “Following the ‘Pilsung Korea Fund,’ which achieved remarkable results by investing in material, parts, and equipment companies, this product invests in core companies that will lead Korea’s 100-year future,” and added, “We will do our best to provide optimal solutions to investors based on NH-Amundi Asset Management’s ESG investment capabilities recognized by leading institutions.”

Meanwhile, this fund can be subscribed to through nationwide branches or the websites of NH NongHyup Bank, NH Investment & Securities, Shinhan Financial Investment, and KB Securities, with plans to gradually expand the number of distributors.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.