CORRECTED-(OFFICIAL)-Sarasin plans emerging markets fund
(Corrects paragraph 6 after figures provided by company corrected to show that directly-managed sustainable assets under management are 10.1 billion Swiss francs and not 30 billion Swiss francs. The larger figure includes assets from third parties which use Sarasin sustainability research)
* Move will stretch Sarasin research team
* Comes after sustainable assets grow three-fold in 5 years
* Sustainable research for third-parties attracts 23 bln eur
LONDON, Oct 26 (Reuters) - Bank Sarasin (BSAN.S) is planning to take advantage of growth in sustainable investment following the financial crisis with an attempt to launch an emerging markets product next year.
So-called sustainable investment strategies often rely on high and consistent standards of disclosure among companies, traditionally seen as an impediment to this style of investment in developing nations.
Bank Sarasin chief investment officer Dr Burkhard Varnholt is bullish on the prospects for emerging markets, but admitted building a sustainable product would not be easy.
"It puts a lot of stress on the research team but we have advanced it quite well and we feel comfortable that we can launch something that will stand up to our traditional benchmarks and quality expectations," he said.
The bank interprets sustainability to mean the provision of goods and services in a socially responsible way, using production methods with the lowest possible social and environmental impacts.
Sarasin has seen its sustainable assets under management grow to 10.1 billion Swiss francs ($9.95 billion) from 3 billion Swiss francs five years ago. A further 23.4 billion of assets is managed by third parties who use Sarasin's sustainability research.
Varnholt said the growth in sustainable assets was partly due to the financial crisis which had prompted investors to rethink how they manage their assets.
The group has also decided to apply a sustainability filter to all its discretionary portfolios unless the client requests otherwise.
During the crisis the group saw net positive inflows into its funds every month, he said. At end-June this year, Sarasin Group's total assets under management stood at 79.9 billion Swiss francs. ($1=1.007 Swiss Franc)
