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A new survey of leading institutional investors released today by The Risk Management Association (RMA) revealed that 95% of respondents believe that securities lending activities can coexist with Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) principles.

It also found that securities lending needs to evolve in order to integrate investors’ ESG principles with their securities lending programs – and highlighted the opportunity for the industry to help asset owners better understand their options for managing ESG factors in securities lending.

The survey was published as part of “Complementary, Not Conflicting: Securities Lending and ESG Investing Coexist,” a white paper that is the product of a wide-ranging effort by RMA’s Council on Securities Lending to capture best practices and identify challenges in harmonizing ESG goals with securities lending strategies.

“Our research shows that securities lending and ESG investing can be complementary, not conflicting,” said Fran Garritt, RMA’s Director of Securities Lending and Global Markets Risk. “This paper shows how this important balance can be achieved – and is being achieved. It also identifies the challenges for the securities lending industry in further integrating ESG factors into securities lending programs. RMA believes that greater transparency and more standardized processes will benefit everyone who uses the securities lending market. We will continue to work with all market participants to ensure the market’s continuing compatibility with ESG investing, which continues to gain momentum.”

To inform the paper, the Council held detailed interviews with nine institutional investors and surveyed 44 firms. Respondents included five of the top 10 global asset managers, two of the top 10 U.S. retirement plans, and two of the top five global sovereign wealth funds. The priorities highlighted by the paper include the need for engagement with portfolio companies as a means of expressing ESG principles, the importance of proxy voting, questions concerning participation in the short side of the market, and the benefits of lending to shareholders and other stakeholders.

Key survey findings

• Ninety-five percent of survey respondents said ESG investing and securities lending can coexist. But only 18% always apply ESG principles to their securities lending programs. Another 25% do so on a case-by-case basis, 18% don’t but are planning to, and 39% simply don’t.
• A lack of timely information about proxy record dates and voting questions complicates the process of recalling stock that is on loan. When survey participants were asked to name “measures that might facilitate the application of ESG principles to their securities lending program,” 43% said that they want more transparency around proxy record dates and questions.
• Just 20% of respondents said that there is “regular” interaction in their institution between those who manage securities lending and those who manage ESG issues. Another 44% responded that interaction occurs “from time to time.”
• Fifty-five percent of participants ranked “greater education about available options” as the top priority when it comes to applying ESG principles to their lending program.

Photo courtesy of qimono.