Osmosis received two industry awards this month. The Osmosis Resource Efficient ex-Fossil Fuels Fund* was awarded runner-up for Best Climate Transition Fund at this year’s ESG Investing Awards**. This award is a testament to the innovation behind the product and the efficacy of the strategy, which has just marked its third anniversary.
The ESG Investing Awards are devoted to assessing and evaluating the best companies involved in all areas of ESG investing across the globe and are designed exclusively for banks, investment managers, research houses, rating agencies, index and ETF providers, and exchanges. Awards categories are assessed by a panel of independent judges comprising financial market professionals, academics, and independent experts.
The same week, the Osmosis Resource Efficient European Equity Fund was awarded Best Offshore European Fund* at South Africa’s prestigious Raging Bull Awards. Raging Bull Awards are made on the basis of outright performance in a number of major unit trust categories and on the basis of risk-adjusted performance in the asset allocation and other key sub-categories as measured by FlexCrown. Competition has increased dramatically over the years according to the Raging Bull website, with fewer than 50-unit trust being considered at initiation.
Osmosis onboarded its first South African client in 2023 so this is an exciting development for the firm as it expands into the South African Market.
About the ex-Fossil Fuels Fund
The Osmosis Resource Efficient Core Equity Ex-Fossil Fuel fund range targets maximum resource efficiency exposure while maintaining a tight tracking error to the MSCI World. The Fund excludes companies that generate more than 5% of their revenues from fossil fuels or nuclear power generation, companies with any revenues from nuclear and controversial weapons and civilian firearms, tobacco companies and companies in breach of any of the UN Global Compact Principles. Portfolio seeks to deliver better risk-adjusted returns relative to the benchmark while simultaneously delivering a significant reduction in the ownership of carbon, water and waste.
Since the Osmosis Core Equity (Ex-Fossil Fuels) strategy’s inception, it has been deployed in the form of a UCITS Common Contractual Fund* seeded by the IMAS Foundation, and in a UCITs ICAV (linked to an Australian Feeder Fund*) seeded by both the University of Oxford and the University of New South Wales. A number of segregated accounts have also been launched following the strategy, including the East Sussex Pension Fund in the UK. The Strategy’s total assets now sit at $1.36 billion USD (data as of 29 February 2024).
About the European Fund
The Osmosis Resource Efficient European Equities Fund seeks superior risk-adjusted returns by targeting maximum resource efficiency exposure relative to the MSCI Europe. The Fund excludes tobacco and any companies that breach the UN Global Compact’s social and governance safeguards. The resulting portfolio demonstrates significantly less ownership of Carbon, Water and Waste than the respective benchmark.
We launched the European Equities Fundin January 2021 to address the needs of investors seeking to disaggregate their global equity exposure. The Fund continues to take advantage of the political support and regulatory pressure forcing companies to act on their environmental initiatives. We believe this, combined with very high environmental disclosers across carbon water and waste, positions the Fund well for continuing success.
*This Fund is not available for US investors. However, the strategy is available as a separately managed account. **Both the ESG investing Awards and the Raging Bull Awards are free to applicants and open to organisations globally. The awards were given in March 2024 and relate to the annual period Dec 22 – Dec 23.
Both the Ex-Fossil Fuel and the European Fund are constructed utilising Osmosis’s proprietary environmental research, which identifies companies that are more resource efficient in creating economic value than their same-sector peers and allow investors to target an uncorrelated source of sustainable alpha from their equity exposure.
Ben Dear, Chief Executive Officer:
“We are delighted to win these awards. Our Resource Efficient product range continues to attract those investors seeking to address environmental issues in a pragmatic and objective fashion, while simultaneously targeting and delivering better risk-adjusted returns.”
Important Information
This document was prepared and issued by Osmosis Investment Research Solutions Limited (“OIRS”). OIRS is an affiliate of Osmosis Investment Management US LLC (regulated in the US by the SEC) and Osmosis Investment Management UK Limited (regulated in the UK by the FCA). OIRS and these affiliated companies are wholly owned by Osmosis (Holdings) Limited (“Osmosis”), a UK-based financial services group. Osmosis has been operating its Model of Resource Efficiency since 2011.
None of the company examples referred to above are intended as a recommendation to buy or sell securities.