Raiffeisen-Nachhaltigkeit-Mix: largest fund in Austria

The Raiffeisen-Nachhaltigkeit-Mix fund now has a volume of around 5.2 billion euros.

• This makes it the largest sustainable mutual fund of any Austrian fund company,

• and also, the largest mutual fund in Austria, overall.

• The fund is also one of the largest in its peer group in Europe in terms of volume. Inflows come from wealthy private clients and retail customers as well as institutional investors.

A pioneer in responsible investing

A key factor in the success of the Raiffeisen Sustainable Mix is the pioneering role that the fund has played and continues to play in Austria in the field of responsible investing. Its well-founded strategic investment approach and its repeatedly award-winning sustainability concept have proven themselves over more than a decade now.

At the same time, the investment process and sustainability concept are continuously improved and, where necessary, adapted to new market conditions. However, they have remained largely unchanged at their core.

The fund not only strives for good performance, but the fund management team is also in active dialogue with many companies, especially those in the fund‘s portfolio (engagement process). Through this dialogue and by voting at shareholder meetings, it promotes responsible, sustainable business practices and addresses any problems or malpractices that may arise.

Due to the size of the fund, the fund management's opinion carries considerable weight with many companies.

Innovative, unique investment process

An important component of the Raiffeisen-Nachhaltigkeit-Mix innovative investment approach is the integration of future-oriented topics such as energy, mobility, technology, infrastructure, raw materials, recycling management, health, nutrition and well-being into the investment process and into the selection of equities and bonds. This integration and the related research processes were launched several years ago. Numerous teams of fund managers, analysts and investment specialists at Raiffeisen Capital Management regularly prepare analyses of important developments and future trends within these thematic areas. The findings of these working groups are made available to all fund managers on a regular basis, including the fund management team of the Raiffeisen Sustainable Mix.

The integration of these findings into the investment process is one of several unique selling points that set the fund apart from its competitors.

However, this does not mean that the fund is immune to value fluctuations and the risks of potential losses. These fundamental risks of capital market investments cannot be eliminated, even with the best fundamental analysis and forward-looking management.

Balanced mix of equities and bonds

• The Raiffeisen-Nachhaltigkeit-Mix is a long-term mixed fund that invests around 50% in equities and 50% in bonds worldwide. This balanced 50:50 mix of equities and bonds is restored through appropriate portfolio adjustments if the weightings shift significantly as a result of different performance of these segments

• To reduce risk and optimise the risk/return profile, investments are diversified globally and individual equities and bonds are selected in a structured investment process. All this is complemented and monitored by professional risk management of the highest standard.

• The fund is actively managed and its multi-stage investment process combines sustainability analyses (incorporating ESG criteria and ESG indicators) with financial analyses of the eligible assets.

• Not only do environmental and climate issues play an important role here, but all ESG components are taken into account. This includes social aspects (such as occupational health and safety, labour rights, employee motivation and the ability to implement good ideas quickly) as well as good corporate governance.

Impact assessment

Current investment focus

The Raiffeisen-Nachhaltigkeit-Mix is broadly diversified worldwide and pursues a long-term investment approach.

• The regional focus of equity investments is currently on the United States, followed by Europe. The United States has long been by far the most important and largest financial market in the world, and this is unlikely to change in the foreseeable future. After a long period of below-average performance, Europe has a good chance of outperforming the market in the coming quarters and years. Of course, there is no guarantee of this.

• In terms of sector allocation, the fund currently focuses on equities from the information technology sector, followed by financials and industrial stocks.

• In the bond segment, the fund invests primarily in two large bond classes with good to very good credit ratings: government bonds (as well as securities from government-related and supranational issuers) and euro-denominated corporate bonds. Similar to equities, bonds can also generate additional returns and reduce risks through careful selection.