Big hitting government funds act on Russian investments

The NZ Super Fund (NZSF), Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC), Government Superannuation Fund (GSF) and National Provident Fund (NPF) have excluded Russian Federation sovereign debt and the securities of majority Russian state-owned enterprises from their respective funds.

Thursday, March 3rd 2022, 11:24AM

The four investors will sell their directly held assets as market conditions permit.

The investors’ actions have been taken in accordance with their respective Responsible Investment/Ethical policies, they say in a statement.

The policies provide for sovereign bond exclusions when there is widespread condemnation or sanctions by the international community and New Zealand has imposed meaningful diplomatic, economic or military sanctions aimed at that government.

The New Zealand Government has strongly condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and implemented a range of measures in response to Russia’s actions. The Prime Minister has also stated the Government is looking at other moves it could make in response to the aggression.

With regard to majority Russian state-owned companies, the investors took into account relevant factors under their respective frameworks, including the strength and scale of the international response and the New Zealand Government’s public position on the invasion, in addition to considering the actions of their peers, expert advice and other relevant factors.

Given the serious nature of the issues, widespread condemnation of the invasion from the international community and by the New Zealand Government, and the close association of the companies to the Russian state through its majority ownership, the four investors considered exclusion the appropriate course of action.

The investors do not apply country-wide company exclusions, and companies are not excluded based solely on their Russian domicile as they may have no links or contribution to the aggression of the Russian state. The investors will monitor the activities of individual companies on a case-by-case basis in the event they are linked to the conflict and meet the threshold for conduct that would see them excluded.

« Advice pays

Tough times ahead for NZ economy: Nikko economist »

Special Offers