BNP Paribas Asset Management (‘BNPP AM’) announces the appointment of Gabriel Wilson-Otto as Head of Stewardship, Asia Pacific, within its Sustainability Centre. Based in Hong Kong, Gabriel reports to Helena Viñes Fiestas, BNPP AM’s Global Head of Stewardship and Policy.
In this newly-created role, Gabriel will lead BNPP AM’s stewardship activities in Asia Pacific, including researching key corporate governance issues, undertaking direct and collaborative corporate engagement, and working with policymakers on key issues relating to sustainable finance and investment.
Jane Ambachtsheer, Global Head of Sustainability at BNP Paribas Asset Management, comments:
“Gabriel has over a decade of experience in corporate engagement and public policy research in Asia Pacific, and been involved in a broad range of ESG issues, including climate change, human rights and supply chain management. He is an active member across key ESG organisations in the region and has been instrumental in helping companies evolve their corporate practices in key areas.”
Gabriel joined from Goldman Sachs, Asia, where he was Executive Director, Head of GS SUSTAIN Asia Pacific. During his 12 years at Goldman Sachs, he was responsible for leading a team to identify long term investment opportunities in high quality companies, evaluate the performance of companies under a proprietary ESG scoring framework, and focused on improving the performance of major corporations based in the region by incorporating ESG factors into fundamental company valuations. He began his career as a research analyst at Deutsche Bank.
Ligia Torres, Chief Executive Officer Asia Pacific, BNP Paribas Asset Management, comments:
“The addition of the Head of Stewardship in Asia Pacific will be invaluable to the development of our sustainable capabilities in this region. It also cements our positon as a leading sustainable asset manager, while we forge ahead to build on our broad range of investment solutions capabilities.”
As a major player in sustainable investment since 2002, BNPP AM sees this as a strategic enabler of growth. Apart from Gabriel’s appointment, the firm also has a Hong Kong-based ESG Investment Specialist, Paul Milon and Green Bond Analyst, Xuan Sheng Ou Yong, who joined the team in early 2019, reflecting the growing importance of sustainability capabilities to BNPP AM. In APAC, the firm recently became a member of the Asia Investor Group on Climate Change. As part of the 27-member community that consists of asset managers and broader financial market participants in the region, BNPP AM is now able to play an even more active role in facilitating dialogue and engagement with other Asian investors, companies and regulators in the transition to a low carbon global economy.
Sustainability is central to BNP Paribas Group’s development strategy. It is committed to building a prosperous future with its clients through growth that is both sustainable and equitable, ensuring it will also have a positive impact on its environment and on society in general.