Singapore Investment Firm GIC Hires Head of Sustainability: 5 Things to Know

Singapore investment firm GIC has hired Calvert Research and Morgan Stanley veteran Emily Chew as head of sustainability, according to her LinkedIn profile.

Here are five things to know about GIC's business and sustainability strategy, and Chew's experience.

1. Business Focus: GIC, founded in 1981, is one of the three investment entities in Singapore that manage Singapore's reserves.The other two are the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and Temasek.

GIC is a private company wholly owned by the government of Singapore. GIC does not own the assets it manages. Instead, the firm is paid a fee as the fund manager. As such, GIC manages most of the government’s financial assets, investing for the long term with an aim to preserve and enhance the international purchasing power of the funds.

2. Investments - Rate of Returns: The GIC Portfolio achieved an annualized USD nominal rate of return of 5.8% over a 20-year period that ended 31 March 2024, according to a July 2024 statement from the organization. Accounting for global inflation, GIC’s annualized real rate of return over the same period was 3.9%, the July 2024 statement said.

3. Sustainability Strategy: GIC’s Sustainability Committee includes senior leaders from the firm's investment, risk and corporate functions. The committee is tasked to implement the sustainability framework, and monitor and respond to environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues. 

GIC's sustainability-focused investments include:

• The Climate Change Opportunities Portfolio (CCOP), a global public equities portfolio deploying long-term, dedicated capital towards climate mitigation and adaptation; 
• The Transition and Sustainable Finance Group (TSFG), a portfolio investing in sustainability-related opportunities across fixed income and multi asset; and
• The Sustainability Solutions Group (SSG), a private equity portfolio deepening GIC’s exposure to early-stage energy transition opportunities.

We don't know if GIC has internal sustainability goals or specific carbon reduction target deadlines.

4. Emily Chew's Experience: Chew previously was executive VP of Calvert Research and Management -- a division of Morgan Stanley Investment Management. At Calvert, her roles included chief responsible investment officer and chief sustainability officer.

Earlier at Morgan Stanley, Chew was global head of sustainability for investment management. She also held key ESG roles at Manulife Investment Management and MSCI.

5. Sustainability Successor? Meanwhile, Calvert Research does not plan to hire a replacement for Chew. Instead, Head of Sustainability Barbara Calvi will take on more responsibility, and multiple team members will take on Chew's former role, Responsible Investor reported.

Chief Sustainability Officers: Why Technology Partners Should Care

By 2027, 25% of Global 2000 companies will have assigned a chief sustainability officer (CSO) responsible for meeting their organization’s ESG goals and making ESG-related IT purchasing decisions, according to IDC.

The bottom line: Technology partners need to extend their sales, marketing, engagement and support strategies to successfully fulfill those CSO customer needs, Sustainable Tech Partner believes.