Metzler Asset Management has launched the mutual fund Metzler Global Ethical Values.

The fund tracks the Global Ethical Values ​​(GEVX) share index of the Hanover Stock Exchange which comprises 679 companies that are filtered out of the parent index Solactive GBS Developed Markets Large & Mid Cap USD using a previously unique three-stage process.

The basis is formed by exclusion criteria, which are based on the ethically sustainable norms and values ​​of the Catholic and Protestant Church in Germany, the Catholic Church in Austria and the Austrian eco-label. The exclusion criteria include B. Corruption and Armaments. In addition, climate-based selection criteria lead to a complete exclusion of business models that are based on fossil fuels, such as the extraction and generation of electricity from coal.

In a second step, the best-in-class and best-in-progress selection takes place, whereby companies with high ESG quality are identified. In the best-in-class approach, companies are selected that have already achieved a comparatively high level of sustainability management within their respective industry. The best-in-progress approach, on the other hand, relies on companies that have made the greatest progress in dealing with challenges in the social field or climate change in recent years.

In the third step, an almost neutral mapping of the regional and sector weights of the parent index is ensured with the help of intelligent index optimization. In this way, a balanced and broadly diversified portfolio can be implemented despite extensive exclusion lists.

The climate-related exclusion criteria reduce the CO2 footprint of the GEVX by more than 40% compared to the parent index.