19. Do Pharmaceuticals in the Environment Present an Investment Risk?

The Sarasin Group is represented in 19 locations worldwide across Europe, the Middle East and Asia. By June 2009 it managed total client assets of CHF 80 billion and employed over 1,500 staff. Its majority shareholder is the Dutch Rabobank. Sustainable asset management is one of the three core investment styles offered by the bank. Here, stock selection is based not just on financial analysis, but also on environmental and social criteria. The sustainability of companies and industries is assessed by a team of nine experts on the basis of more than 70 criteria (Plinke 2007). In the bond segment, Sarasin’s analysts not only award sustainability ratings to companies, but also to countries and supranational organisations. Over the past 10 years the volume of assets that Sarasin manages according to sustainable principles has soared from CHF 626 million to CHF 10 billion.