Original title: Three types of pension insurance funds reach 13 trillion ESG investment or become a new track
The Social Security Forum of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and the release ceremony of the “China Pension Development Report 2021” were held in Beijing a few days ago. Authoritative figures in the industry have heated discussions around “pension funds and ESG investment”. According to reports, the current three types of pension insurance funds in my country have reached 13 trillion yuan. Entering the ESG (environment, society, and governance) field will find more good investment opportunities, enhance the ability to maintain and increase value, and better cope with the aging of the population.
“Ten years ago, the discussion of pension funds entering the market was’talking about tigers’. In the past ten years, the basic pension insurance fund investment has continued to advance, and the National Social Security Fund has been entrusted to invest. Investment is very necessary to improve the sustainability of the basic pension insurance fund.” China Social Science Zheng Bingwen, director of the Institute’s World Social Security Research Center, said.
Tang Jisong, vice president of the Chinese Society of Social Insurance and former director of the Social Insurance Fund Supervision Bureau of the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, said that pension insurance is related to the national economy and people’s livelihood. The participation of pension funds in ESG investment can improve economic and social benefits, and ESG investment contributes to the high-quality and sustainable development of pension funds.
Chen Wenhui, vice chairman of the National Council for Social Security Fund, said that ESG investment will play an important role in my country’s sound multi-level pension insurance system. my country’s three types of pension insurance funds have reached 13 trillion yuan. Entering the ESG field can find more good investment opportunities, enhance the ability to maintain and increase value, and better cope with the aging of the population. As of the end of 2020, the scale of global ESG assets has reached 35 trillion U.S. dollars. As an important participant in the capital market, pension funds will play an important role in practicing ESG concepts.
Yuan Xucheng, director of the Insurance Fund Utilization Supervision Department of the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission, pointed out that ESG investment assets have an impact on the environment and society and are in line with the new development concept. Deepening the long-term capital ESG investment concept is conducive to high-quality development. The ESG investment of insurance funds has increased in intensity and diversified in various ways. The preliminary statistics of insurance funds investment in related industries have reached more than one trillion yuan.
“ESG has practical significance for the preservation and appreciation of pension funds. Pension fund investment implements ESG concepts, conforms to the trend of globalization, and conforms to the trend of my country’s economic and social development. my country has the foundation to accelerate the construction of an ESG ecosystem, which will help promote the healthy development of the capital market. It will help promote the development of the pension asset management industry itself.” said Cao Deyun, executive vice president and secretary general of the China Insurance Asset Management Association.
Chen Chunyan, secretary-general of the China Securities Investment Fund Association, believes that ESG investment will guarantee the stable and long-term investment returns of pension funds. Changing the previous practice of focusing mainly on financial indicators and focusing on systemic risks such as the environment and climate will help risk management. By the end of 2021, there will be 146 public pension funds with a scale of 111.23 billion yuan. 15% of fund companies have incorporated green investment into their corporate strategy.
However, it must be noted that the overall scale of pension funds in my country is not large, the proportion of green investment and sustainable investment is not high, the lack of data, the inconsistent evaluation standards, and the lack of mandatory information disclosure are external constraints that restrict ESG investment by pension funds. surroundings.
Liu Feng, secretary-general of the China Banking Association, suggested that the ESG investment information disclosure framework and rating standard system should be continuously enriched, increasing supply capacity, enriching the choice of financial products, strengthening investment education and publicity, and cultivating responsible investors. Chen Chunyan suggested that ESG concepts should be incorporated into investment strategies, a unified information disclosure mechanism should be established, and ESG investment by private equity funds should be promoted.
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