May 24, 2022
To accelerate a sustainable future, Manulife has implemented a bold Climate Action Plan: a global strategy to achieve net zero financed emissions by 2050, and reduce absolute operational scope 1 and 2 emissions 35% by 2035. The plan is focused in three key areas:
- Operations: substantially reducing emissions to lessen our footprint
- Investments: actively investing for a sustainable future
- Products and services: developing solutions that contribute to climate change mitigation
Making tangible progress on those goals takes the commitment of every business area across Manulife’s global operations. The General Account has risen to the challenge with a plan to achieve net zero financed emissions by 2050 which is no small feat.
Manulife’s General Account consists of the company’s own assets, which largely support policyholder liabilities and currently holds $427 billion worth of investments.
“The timeframe between selling a life insurance product to when a claim is made can be lengthy, sometimes decades apart,” said Adam Wise, Vice President, Natural Resources and Sustainable Solutions, at Manulife. “This requires a sophisticated asset liability management strategy that considers all material asset classes to achieve above market risk-adjusted returns while balancing the need to invest for a sustainable future. A long term, through-the-cycle, disciplined investment approach has historically allowed us to derive superior risk-adjusted returns by using a diversified, high quality asset mix – and we will be increasingly focused on supporting climate-positive areas of investment, including real assets like renewable energy, timberland and sustainable real estate.”
Currently, the General Account manages over $42 billion in green investments, a portfolio that continues to grow. Manulife’s existing green investments provide a substantial foundation to achieve its net zero financed emissions goal.