Erste AM pulls out of coal investments

Erste Asset Management says it will abstain from investments in companies that operate in the fields of coal mining or the production of electricity or fuel from coal from 1 July 2021.

The decision applies to all mutual funds managed actively by Erste Asset Management but
companies that have committed to exit coal in accordance with the Paris Climate Accord
are exempt from the policy.

“As early as in 2016 we were one of the first investment companies in the German-speaking region with a corporate coal policy. We now reach the next milestone by adhering to even more stringent criteria in our investments. We would explicitly want others to follow suit so we can solve the climate crisis together,” says Heinz Bednar, CEO of Erste Asset Management.

Erste Asset Management evaluates its operations with respect to coal mining (thermic or metallurgic), power production from black coal or brown coal and fuel production (liquid or gaseous) from coal.