Nordea Life & Pension says it is making a new demand of all its external asset managers – that they must have committed to a net-zero emissions target in line with a 1.5°C scenario no later than in 2024.

Laying out its new climate targets for 2025, Nordea Life and Pension also announced it had committed to reduce the carbon intensity of its investment portfolios by at least 25% by the end of 2024.

The demand Nordea Life & Pension is making of its external managers matches the goal of the 2016 Paris Agreement, a legally-binding international treaty on climate change, which aims to limit global warming to well below two, preferably to 1.5°C, compared to pre-industrial levels.

Katja Bergqvist, chief executive officer of the Nordea subsidiary, said: “For us and our customers, sustainability is essential, and as an asset owner we have a great opportunity to influence how the assets are managed.”

The €62bn pensions and insurance firm, a co-founder of the UN Net Zero Asset Owner Alliance, said all members of the alliance had committed to carbon neutrality by 2050, and were also required to present individual sub-targets for 2025 this year.

“One of Nordea Life & Pension’s new targets is imposing a net-zero target requirement on asset managers who wish to manage capital on behalf of Nordea Life & Pension and its pension savers,” the firm said.

The second of the sub-targets was a commitment to cut its portfolio emissions by at least 25% by the end of 2024, compared with the beginning of 2020, it said.

“The coming 10 years are crucial. Long-term net zero targets must contain short-term concrete goals and transparent reporting,” said Bergqvist.

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