The event was the first to reveal the figures of the annual study conducted by Swiss Sustainable Finance on the sustainable investment market in Switzerland, which amounted to CHF 390.6 billion in 2017, representing 82% increase over the previous year.
The issue of sustainable investing in the world of foundations was discussed at the opening roundtable with Sabrina Grassi, Director of Operations at Swiss Philanthropy Foundation and Delphine Bottge, Partner at Bottge & Associés.
As a founding member of Sustainable Finance Geneva and Swiss Sustainable Finance, Swiss Philanthropy Foundation has long been involved in the development of sustainable investments and is sensitive to the issue of « Mission Related Investment », which consists in aligning its investments with its values and missions.
While the institutional framework and the vision developed by the Foundation are in favour of sustainable investment, Sabrina Grassi states that the reality of the founding foundation implies that the effective implementation is done under the impetus of the donors of the sheltered funds.
This was the case of a historic family fund, housed by the Foundation, which decided to place the entire portfolio on ESG criteria. This impetus marked the starting point for sustainable investments, which have since grown significantly within the Foundation over the past two years, under the increasing awareness of donors for ethical, social, societal and environmental issues.
“By the end of 2018, almost 70% of the assets of the Swiss Philanthropy Foundation will be invested in sustainable investment criteria”
To know more, download the Swiss Sustainable Investment Market Study 2018.
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