Michelle Lopez

Aberdeen Standard Investments (ASI) launches the Aberdeen Standard Focused Sustainable Australian Equity Fund (the Fund), as it looks to capitalise on its long track record in global environmental, social and governance (ESG) investing to promote sustainable and responsible investing in Australia.

The Fund is ASI’s first sustainable Australian equity product, and seeks to generate strong long-term performance by investing in an all cap, concentrated portfolio of 20 to 35 financially attractive ASX listed companies that have been identified through ASI’s rigorous bottom-up stock selection as sustainable leaders and improvers in managing ESG risks and opportunities. The fund will target a weighted average carbon intensity at least 20% lower than its benchmark, the S&P /ASX200 Accumulation Index^[1].

The launch of the Fund sees ASI deploy its globally recognised ESG investment capabilities within the Australian equities market at a time when local investors are demanding greater access to an increasingly diverse offering of sustainable and responsible investment products.

The Fund is managed by ASI’s high performing Australian equities team, led by Head of Australian Equities Michelle Lopez and Deputy Head of Australian Equities Natalie Tam.

ASI’s dedicated Responsible Investment and Stewardship function of over 20 ESG specialists conducts thematic ESG research used by it’s on-desk ESG specialists to complement their industry insights and bottom-up ESG analysis, in order to deliver high impact company engagements and actionable ESG insights.

ASI’s Responsible Investment team will also provide top-down support to the fund’s management team, using its proprietary ESG scoring methodology – which incorporates ASI’s own voting and internal analytical insight data – to identify high risk companies for active exclusion, rather than relying wholly on third party research providers.

This allows ASI to take its own views on sector-specific risks into account, enabling a broader assessment of operations and governance risks, rather than just ESG factors.

“The decision to launch the Aberdeen Standard Focused Sustainable Australian Equity Fund now is a reflection of clients’ increasing demand for funds which are focused on investing in more sustainable companies,” Michelle said.

“The notion that looking for ‘sustainable’ companies compromises performance is outdated; at ASI we believe sustainable leaders and improvers are better managed, more proactive, and better positioned to deal with upcoming challenges related to major environmental and social change. We want more Australians to be able to take advantage of these benefits.”

ASI Managing Director Australia Brett Jollie said the firm had a strong track record of responsible investing, stretching across almost three decades.

“We have a long heritage of integrating ESG factors into our equity process, and we’re excited to take the next step in the Australian market with the launch of our inaugural sustainable and responsible Australian equity product, the Aberdeen Standard Focused Sustainable Australian Equity Fund,” Brett said.

“We’ve also got one of the largest dedicated ESG resources in the industry, including our central Responsible Investment and Stewardship teams, our on-desk ESG equity specialists and more than 120 equity investment managers responsible for the ESG assessment of each of our companies.

“We’re looking forward to the success of the fund and we plan to roll out a broader range of sustainable and responsible products in the near future.”

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[1] As measured by the ASI Carbon Footprint tool, which uses Trucost data for Scope 1 and 2 emissions.

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ASI has appointed Natalie Tam to Deputy Head of Australian Equities, and Camille Simeon to Investment Director, recognising their deep experience in markets and positive contribution to the performance of the Australian equities portfolio management team.

Aberdeen Standard Investments Head of Australian Equities, Michelle Lopez, said the promotions were an endorsement of Natalie and Camille’s work.

“I am delighted to award these promotions to Natalie and Camille, who have been committed members of the Australian equities team over the last 15 and 12 years, respectively.

“While the last nine months have been challenging, both Natalie and Camille have stepped up and led on projects in addition to their day-to-day analysis and portfolio management responsibilities, which have been extraordinarily demanding during these times.

“Furthermore, the work Natalie and Camille have contributed to, to continue to grow our ESG engagement with businesses and their successes in the area this year is a testament to their promotions,” Lopez said.

Natalie joined Aberdeen Standard Investments in 2005 from Deutsche Bank where she worked as a research analyst covering the Media sector. Natalie previously worked at Rothschild (Investment Banking), Coca Cola Amatil (Corporate Strategy) and Royal & Sun Alliance (Group Finance), and is a CFA charterholder.

Camille joined ASI as an Equities Investment Manager in 2008 from Citigroup, where she was Vice President Institutional Research Sales in Australia and New York. She holds a Bachelor of Business in Finance from the University of Technology Sydney, and has completed a Post Graduate Diploma in Investment and Financial Analysis from the Securities Institute of Australia.

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Michelle LopezM

Aberdeen Standard Investments (ASI) has promoted experienced investment professional Michelle Lopez to lead its successful Australian Equities team. She succeeds Robert Penaloza who has been appointed Head of Thailand for ASI.

Aberdeen Standard Investments Australia Managing Director Brett Jollie said the promotions were a reflection of ASI’s ability to recognise, develop and retain high performers within its business.

“Michelle Lopez’s promotion from Deputy Head to Head of Australian Equities is an endorsement of her strong leadership capabilities and investment experience, which has included more than 15 years in the ASI Australian Equities team. Michelle has played a pivotal role in managing and driving the success of the team and is a natural and well-respected successor. This promotion is reflective of her commitment, knowledge and proven ability.

“She will report directly to Flavia Cheong, Head of Asia Pacific Equities. There will be no change to the Quality focused investment process or the current team structure under Michelle’s leadership,” Mr Jollie added.

Michelle said the key to the team’s success had been its stability and the intellectual rigour of its members. “I am excited about what this fantastic team of professionals can achieve and how we can continue to build on the tremendous work to date, finding compelling investment ideas and opportunities with a long-term and active strategy,” she said.

Michelle joined ASI as an investment analyst from Willis Towers Watson in 2004 and was promoted to Investment Manager and then Investment Director before being appointed Deputy Head of Australian Equities.

She has a Bachelor of Applied Finance and Bachelor of Commerce (Marketing) from Macquarie University and is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA).

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