Environmental indicators for real estate funds

At the UN Climate Change Conference in Paris at the end of 2015, a new agreement was signed for the period after 2020 under which all signatory states are obliged for the first time to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. The aim of this agreement is to limit the average rate of global warming compared with pre-industrial levels. Switzerland ratified the Paris Agreement in October 2017. The Federal Council then adopted a report and guidelines on sustainability in the financial sector in June 2020 and parameters for mandatory climate reporting by large companies in August 2021. FINMA clarified the disclosure requirements in relation to climate-related financial risks for banks and insurers in May 2021 and published guidance on preventing and combating greenwashing in November 2021.

In view of these developments, the Asset Management Association Switzerland has also begun to address the subject of sustainability. Together with Swiss Sustainable Finance (SSF), it published key messages and recommendations on sustainable asset management in 2020, followed by recommendations on transparency and minimum requirements for sustainable investment approaches and products in 2021. Today it is publishing the environmental indicators for real estate funds that have been developed with the aid of its Real Estate Funds specialist committee.