Dutch companies have never been this transparent on their tax strategy. This conclusion follows from the Tax Transparency Benchmark of the Dutch Association of Investors for Sustainable Development (VBDO) at 77 Dutch, stock listed companies. The winner of the fifth […]
Every year VBDO examines the performance of the responsible investment policy of Dutch pension funds. The benchmark assesses the 50 largest pension funds in the Netherlands, together accounting for 92% of the assets under management with a total value of […]
Climate change has been on the agenda of Dutch pension funds since the Paris Climate Agreement. To what extent does the climate approach of Dutch institutional investors actually contribute to solving the climate problem? Hardly, according to new research by […]
Almost all Dutch pension funds invest in mining, a sector that is notorious for its large, negative impact on people and the environment. To what extent do Dutch pension funds take these risks into account in their responsible investment policy? […]
“Making Up Your Own Mind” A few years ago, sustainable and responsible investment was a hobby for some employees in the investment field, but nowadays this has changed. Responsible investment is mainstream and receives attention on all levels at every […]
At first sight, the link between crowdfunding and institutional investors is not very logical. Yet there are opportunities here for institutional investors that are currently hardly being used. If we look at neighboring countries such as England and Germany, we […]
VBDO has been asking questions for 24 years at the General Meetings of Shareholders (AGMs) of listed companies in the Netherlands. We believe it is important to encourage the sustainability performance of companies through engagement. VBDO does this every year […]
a.s.r. is the insurer with the best developed responsible investment policy in the Netherlands, according to the “VBDO Benchmark Responsible Investing by Insurers in the Netherlands 2019”. It is the eighth time that the Association of Investors for Sustainable Development […]
This explorative study focuses on adapting to the physical consequences of climate change. It will describe the causes and consequences of climate change for investors. Climate change increases the likelihood of extreme weather events, floods, droughts and subsequent mass migration. […]
Pension funds must do more to prevent forced labour. This is the conclusion of a survey among the fifty largest Dutch pension funds. The Dutch Association of Investors for Sustainable Development (VBDO) publishes the study ‘Dutch Pension Funds and Forced […]
Only a limited number of large pension funds have made the sustainable UN targets part of the investment policy. The majority does not yet do so because of lack of capacity and knowledge. The funds also play a part in […]
VBDO presents fourth Tax Transparency Benchmark Dutch companies become more transparent about their tax policy. This is shown by research by the Association of Investors for Sustainable Development (VBDO) at 76 Dutch companies. The winner of the fourth Tax Transparency […]
Wake-up call 70 years after the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights Majority of clothing and agricultural companies failing to do enough to prevent child labour Prada, Starbucks and Kraft Heinz among companies scoring poorly Leading companies include […]
Leading Dutch pension funds continue to improve responsible investment policy ABP, the pension fund for the government and education sector, has the best developed responsible investment policy of the Dutch largest pension funds. The ten best-performing pension funds in the […]
The largest listed companies in the Netherlands embrace the Sustainable Development Goals. Research by the Association of Investors for Sustainable Development (VDBO) at 35 Dutch listed companies shows that important progress was made on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in […]
A White Paper has now been issued based on the results of the Expeditions Finance & Natural Capital. VBDO, CREM and NextGreen have combined their expertise for the realization of the White Paper and the Expeditions. There has also been close […]
End of april 2018 the VBDO, together with the Natural Capital Coalition and the Natural Capital Finance Alliance, launched ‘Connecting Finance and Natural Capital: A Supplement to the Natural Capital Protocol’ in Hong Kong. The guidance provides guidelines for the […]
Direct risks for portfolios remain underexposed Research of VBDO together with AXA IM among 38 institutional investors shows: 18% have quantitative target reduction of CO2 emissions 26% exclude polluting companies More focus on combating climate problem than relief consequences Fewer […]
Read full text in Dutch
Research by the Association of Investors for Sustainable Development (VBDO) shows that the largest Dutch pension funds still pay insufficient attention to the theme of living wage. 39 of the 50 largest pension funds participated in this study and 85% […]
View the adjusted scores on the Benchmark Pension Funds here. The 11th edition of the VBDO Benchmark Pension Funds shows that the trend towards a growing responsible investment portfolio has continued this year. Pension funds increasingly incorporate environmental and social criteria […]
VBDO published an investment guide in the field of responsible tax policy. The guide focuses on institutional investors and provides guidance on how they can responsibly integrate new developments in tax and governance legislation and regulations into both their internal […]
This report contains the results of VBDO’s engagement with 38 Dutch stock-listed companies around their Annual General Meeting. This year we focused on three themes; natural capital, paying a living wage, and the embracement of the Sustainable Development Goals by […]
Here you can find the adjusted ranking of the Benchmark insurance companies 2017. This report, published by the Dutch Association of Investors for Sustainable Development (VBDO), provides a detailed overview of the current status quo and trends within the responsible investment […]
Benchmarking has proven to be an effective instrument in driving sustainability in the financial sector. It creates a race to the top by providing comparative insight into which financial institutions and sustainability topics are lagging behind. The VBDO has assessed the […]
Climate change is increasingly becoming visible on the radar of institutional investors, who acknowledge the relevance of the topic by taking it into account in the development and implementation of their investment strategies. VBDO provides a set of recommendations for […]
The use of tobacco is unhealthy and this has been known for a long time. Half of its users will die of the consequences. For the Netherlands this means that every year 20,000 people die due to smoking. The World […]
The Dutch Association of Investors for Sustainable Development (VBDO) annually examines the composition and size of the Dutch retail and private banking market for sustainable savings and investments. This year’s report is the sixteenth edition and is financed by ABN […]
Shareholder engagement concerns the use of one’s ownership position to influence the decision making of company management. In doing so, shareholders aim to increase transparency and accountability and to raise social and environmental standards of corporate behavior. The practice has […]
This is the 10th annual edition of the VBDO Benchmark Responsible Investment by Pension Funds in the Netherlands. This report, published by the Dutch Association of Investors for Sustainable Development (VBDO), provides a detailed overview of the current status and trends […]
Fuelled by revelations such as the Panama Papers and investigations by the European Commission, the issue of ‘tax behaviour’ has taken center stage in the global public debate. Both multinational companies and governments find themselves increasingly under scrutiny, and in […]
According to a report conducted by the Dutch Association for Sustainable Development (VBDO), assigned by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 18 of 60 researched Dutch multinationals publicly commit to the OECD Guidelines. With 24 more companies that have expressed their […]
Text only available in Dutch