Rest investment option receives highest RIAA sustainable rating

A sustainable investment option offered by Australian superannuation fund, Rest, has received a new classification from the Responsible Investment Association Australasia (RIAA).

As part of the RIAA’s Sustainability Classifications Initiative – held within the association’s existing Responsible Investment Certification Program – Rest’s Sustainable Growth investment option has received the ‘Sustainable Plus’ classification, the highest of three categories.

Rest’s General Manager, Responsible Investment & Sustainability, Leilani Weier, said the classification was a testament to the fund’s commitment to implementing and meeting sustainability goals.

“With around half of our members aged under 30 and decades from retirement, we are pleased to offer a choice investment option which meets RIAA’s highest classification standard. This is consistent with Rest’s broader sustainability aspiration to support actions which help to build a better, fairer and more sustainable future,” Weier said.

“We know our responsible investment approach matters to our members, with 94% of surveyed members agreeing it’s important we invest responsibly and ethically without impacting investment returns.

“Further, Sustainable Growth’s investments in listed Australian and Overseas shares (excluding private equity) target a weighted average carbon intensity (WACI) (measured in tonnes of carbon emissions (Scope 1 and Scope 2) per million dollars in sales in US dollars) that is at least 50% lower than their respective benchmarks, being the ASX300 and MSCI World ex Australia.”

The new classification comes after the investment option was first certified as a Responsible Investment Product in 2022.