Responsible Investments
Summary - Our sustainability work
The demand for sustainable and responsible investments continues to rise. As a company in the financial industry, we recognise our increasingly important role in making a real impact on society and the environment.
At Ress Capital, our focus is to generate attractive and predictable long-term returns for our clients. Sustainability is an integral part of our operations. We want our clients to feel confident that ethical and sustainable business practices are at the forefront of our daily activities and that we are committed to enhancing our sustainability efforts continuously. As an alternative investment manager active in the secondary market for US life insurance policies, we consider ethics a key aspect of sustainability.
No sustainable investment objective
As a financial institution, Ress Capital is subject to the transparency requirements of the EU Disclosure Regulation 2019/2088, also known as the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (“SFDR”). Ress Life Investments A/S, the fund that Ress Capital manages, is classified in accordance with Article 8 under SFDR. In compliance with the regulation, this classification means that the fund promotes environmental or social characteristics but does not have sustainable investment as its objective.
The fund promotes social characteristics and does not pursue a sustainable investment objective or promote environmental characteristics. The assessment is that investments in life insurance policies have no negative impact on the environment or global climate since the transaction will only result in a change of contracting parties. Additionally, the investments in life insurance policies do not cause significant harm to any other sustainability goals.
Environmental or social characteristics of the financial product
Ress Capital wants to contribute to a sustainable investment industry. Our guiding principle is to contribute to a sustainable development actively and responsibly, by ensuring that our business activities are carried out in a manner that maintains the company’s values and with respect for people, our society, the environment, natural resources, and the climate. Ress Capital shall meet and exceed the expectations that the company’s stakeholders have in relation to our business activities.
Ress Capital manages a portfolio of US life insurance policies. Life insurance policies are purchased from US households who no longer need life insurance coverage. Ress Capital enable senior individual households to obtain a cash payout for an unneeded insurance policy or in cases of inability to afford premiums. Instead of stop paying premiums and letting the policy lapse, the transaction may contribute to elderly individuals maintaining a long-term comfortable standard of living after retirement or retaining ongoing healthcare.
Buying life insurance policies, has no environmental footprint, and as mentioned it could potentially provide a significant, positive impact on the social welfare of the citisens in the US. By reason of that, we propose life settlements to be a socially sustainable, responsible investment alternative.
International standards and commitments
UN Principles for Responsible Investment
As an additional step in our commitment to sustainability, Ress Capital signed the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investments (PRI) in 2017. This commitment entails integrating the six principles and reporting the outcomes annually. More information about PRI’s six principles can be found on the organisation’s website.
The principles briefly state the following:
- We will incorporate Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) issues into investment analysis and decision-making processes
- We will be active owners and incorporate ESG issues into our ownership policies and practices.
- We will seek appropriate disclosure on ESG issues by the entities in which we invest.
- We will promote acceptance and implementation of the Principles within the investment industry.
- We will work together to enhance our effectiveness in implementing the Principles.
- We will each report on our activities and progress towards implementing the Principles.
The company also considers the following international norms and agreements:
UN Global Compact
Aims to encourage the adoption of sustainable and socially responsible policies and practices. Encompassing ten principles in the areas of human rights, environment, labor rights, and anti-corruption (www.unglobalcompact.org).
OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises
Are a set of recommendations or standards for responsible business conduct, including aspects such as human rights, disclosure of information, employees, environment, bribery and anti-corruption, consumer interests, competition, etc. (www.oecd.org).
