Social

Stakeholders assess ESG policy priorities for Parliament

RACHEL ALEMBAKIS  |  FRIDAY, 8 JUL 2016  |  NEWS
While Australia waits to see who will form government for the 45th session of Parliament, stakeholders with environmental, social and governance (ESG) focus are turning their attention to their policy objectives for the next term, as well as developing ...

Good Shepherd Microfinance to open Queensland Good Money sites

RACHEL ALEMBAKIS  |  FRIDAY, 1 JUL 2016  |  NEWS
Good Shepherd Microfinance will expand its Good Money retail sites into Queensland by opening branches in Cairns and the Gold Coast in 2017.

Podcast: Australia's Affordable Housing Solution

RACHEL ALEMBAKIS  |  FRIDAY, 24 JUN 2016  |  NEWS
The impact of Australia's lack of affordable housing is far reaching - low-income earners are being pushed to the fringes of cities, with some households paying up to 85 per cent of their income on rent.

The search for better social metrics to value affordable housing

RACHEL ALEMBAKIS  |  FRIDAY, 24 JUN 2016  |  NEWS
There is a multistakeholder push to develop metrics to more accurately measure the social impacts of affordable housing developments, with investors, intermediaries and housing providers all seeking more reliable standards to assess social as well as ...

Video: Investing and human rights

RACHEL ALEMBAKIS  |  FRIDAY, 3 JUN 2016  |  NEWS
Human rights are a growing concern amongst global investors. As investing becomes more transparent, owning companies that breach global conventions on human rights carries greater reputational risk, which can potentially have a material impact on company ...

Victorian government to pilot social impact bonds

RACHEL ALEMBAKIS  |  WEDNESDAY, 1 JUN 2016  |  NEWS
The Victorian state government will fund a program to pilot social impact bonds (SIBs).

Conduct risk a concern for financial services sector: Ausbil

RACHEL ALEMBAKIS  |  FRIDAY, 27 MAY 2016  |  NEWS
Conduct risk in the financial services sector is issue that investors must take into consideration for direct impacts such as fines, but also indirect impacts such as management distraction and staff retention, according to research from Ausbil Investment ...

Financial Impact Action Plan program to target exclusion

RACHEL ALEMBAKIS  |  FRIDAY, 27 MAY 2016  |  NEWS
A coalition of organisations including Good Shepherd Microfinance, EY, Centre for Social Impact (CSI), and the Australian government has launched the Financial Inclusion Action Plan (FIAP) program.

ESG integration continues to spread across Asia: Robeco

RACHEL ALEMBAKIS  |  FRIDAY, 29 APR 2016  |  NEWS
Integration of environmental, social and governance (ESG) considerations into investment processes continue to grow across Asia Pacific markets, but in diverse fashions and influenced by variable regulatory and market considerations, according to Ronnie ...

Tax transparency an ESG consideration for investors

RACHEL ALEMBAKIS  |  FRIDAY, 29 APR 2016  |  NEWS
Tax transparency is an issue for investor consideration as part of an overall environmental, social and governance (ESG) approaches, but the extent to which tax transparency is material depends on investment beliefs and investment approaches.