NN Investment Partners (NN IP) has been awarded a top A+ rating for responsible investment.

The UN Principles for Responsible Investment (UN PRI) awarded the Dutch fund manager its top score for excellent strategy and governance approach to responsible investing and ESG integration.

NN IP also received an A+ score for ESG integration within listed equity, ranking among the top global asset managers signed to the PRI in this category.

NN IP has been an active player in responsible investing since the 1990s and said it will increase efforts to achieve the highest score in all asset classes, especially fixed income where it admitted improvements could be made.

“We should not be complacent as there is still work to be done,” said Edith Siermann, head of fixed income solutions and responsible investing at NN IP.

“Despite our overall top score, the UN PRI assessment also clearly shows where we can improve our efforts, for example in the area of fixed income.”

Siermann said it was the company’s aim to achieve the highest score for all the asset classes in which we are active.

“Though there is ample room for improvement, I’m convinced that if we focus our efforts on implementation and responsible investing research, we will succeed,” she said.

Sierman added the firm recently introduced a new ESG framework to aid ESG integration across all assets.

Valentijn van Nieuwenhuijzen, chief investment officer at NN IP, said the maximum score underlined its ambition to be a leader in the ESG market.

“This A+ score is also a signal to our clients that we are not only committed to responsible investing, but that we also successfully integrate it in our investment process and portfolios,” he said.

The UN PRI, which is supported by the United Nations, works to understand the investment implications of environmental, social and governance factors and help investors incorporate these factors into investment and ownership decisions.