Cove Private Wealth believes that environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues can impact the performance of companies. Therefore, ESG & Sustainability performance can influence the returns generated by our investment portfolios. We are dedicated to integrating ESG & sustainability into our investment decisions and improving our own corporate ESG & Sustainability.
Our approach is guided by our four pillars of ESG integration:
Cove Private Wealth is dedicated to leading ESG integration across all investment products. Cove Private Wealth was named as a RIAA Responsible Leader for three consecutive years in 2020-2022, and was identified as a Top 10 Responsible Investment Leader in 2022.
Cove Private Wealth’s third annual ESG report for the 2022 financial year has now been combined with our engagement report.
Our third annual listed corporate Better Future Survey Report, which aims to take the ESG pulse of ASX listed companies.
Our contribution to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, our sustainable theme exposure, and our portfolio holdings that are contributing to a better future.
Cove Private Wealth has been a signatory to the United Nations backed Principles for Responsible Investment since 2009. We report our progress annually in the PRI signatory reporting tool. You can read our transparency report here. We received A’s across all areas in the 2020 assessment report.
Cove Private Wealth is a supporter of the Task Force on Climate Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) and encourage companies to report under the initiative.
Cove Private Wealth is a signatory to the 30% Club, which campaigns for at least 30% of women on ASX300 boards. Where possible, we engage with companies to have equal gender representation on the board.
Cove Private Wealth supports Climate Action 100+ which is an investor-led initiative to ensure the world’s largest corporate greenhouse gas emitters take necessary action on climate change.
Cove Private Wealth is a founding signatory of Investors Against Slavery & Trafficking ASIA-Pacific (IAST APAC) and on a working group to assist companies to identify and take action on modern slavery and human rights issues in their supply chain.
Cove Private Wealth is a member of Responsible Investment Association Australasia (RIAA) and is recognised as a Responsible Investment leader by RIAA in 2020 and 2021. Our Better Future Trust is a certified Responsible Investment product.
We have a Sustainability Working Group which includes representatives across investment teams as well as from our operations and corporate functions. It is engaged in not only improving our approach to responsible investing but also developing our corporate strategy in relation to ESG, sustainability and responsibility.
We are constantly seeking to improve our performance in this area, and current initiatives include:
Our firmwide operations have been certified as operationally carbon neutral for the 2020/2021 financial year through Pathzero. An overview of our emissions profile can be found here.
Having measured our carbon footprint, we offset our Scope 1, 2 and 3 corporate greenhouse gas emissions through purchasing Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) to support the Big Creek Regeneration Project, an Australian Government Clean Energy Regulator carbon farming initiative located in Quilpie Shire, Queensland.
We already had several existing reduction initiatives in place that minimised our operational emissions profile, including our use of renewable energy. As such, all our emissions were Scope 3 in nature. Our top 4 emission sources are ICT Services & Equipment, Staff Commuting, Professional Services and Taxis & Rideshare.
We believe achieving operational carbon neutrality and reducing our carbon footprint will help to facilitate a better future and the transition toward a low carbon economy. Regularly engaging with our portfolio companies across all Perennial funds on environmental issues, including encouraging climate-related disclosures, we are pleased to provide transparency in our own carbon emissions and look forward to reporting progress on our corporate ESG journey.
In keeping with our philosophy of putting the long-term interests of investors first, our Responsible Investment Policy is designed to assist us to improve and uphold the governance of the entities in which we invest, as well as the competence and integrity of management.
Cove Private Wealth uses active stewardship to contribute to improving and upholding the environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices of entities we invest, so that they are managed with competence and integrity. We uphold the long-term interests of shareholders through discussions and engagement with companies and/or exercising our proxy voting responsibilities.
Cove Private Wealth uses its proxy voting responsibilities for the best interests for our clients. Although we have the support of proxy voting research, we form our voting decisions independently based on our view of the management of, and corporate governance of the entity. On a semi-annual basis, we publish a summary of our proxy voting record. To see the record for 6 months to 31 December 2022, please click here.
In the spirit of reconciliation, Cove Private Wealth acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the Country in which we work, the Gadigal people of the Eora nation, and recognise their continuing connection to land, waters and culture. We pay our respects to their Elders past, present and emerging.
We also accept the invitation in the Uluru Statement from the Heart to walk together in a movement of the Australian people for a better future.
At Cove Private Wealth we believe that reconciliation is a crucial step for Australian businesses towards building strong and authentic connections with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. We are very proud to have released our first Reconciliation Action Plan in August 2022 – our Reflect RAP – the first stage of Reconciliation Australia’s RAP framework – and see this as a demonstration of our commitment and respect for the Traditional Owners of Australia.
We believe it our Reflect RAP will serve as a solid foundation to ensure our contributions to the reconciliation movement are meaningful and sustainable.
For further information on our commitment to ESG or tailored solutions available, talk to a Client Services Representative today.
Cove Private Wealth, we have a dedicated ESG strategy which invests in companies that are shaping a better future. The strategy is available through: