Billions Pulled From Europe’s Controversial ESG Investing Fund Category
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Asset managers love them, while clients seem increasingly wary of them: Article 8 funds.
It’s a category within Europe’s ESG investing rulebook that saw huge growth last quarter, as the asset-management industry slapped an Article 8 -- also known as “light green” -- tag on well over 600 funds that previously weren’t classified as sustainable, according to data provided by Morningstar Inc. At the same time, clients withdrew more than $30 billion from such products. A stricter environmental, social and governance classification -- Article 9 -- saw $6 billion of inflows.