The strategy behind Macquarie's green transition
The first investment of Macquarie's latest renewable energy fund is a key step in the bank's complicated strategy to make its asset management business a green investment powerhouse.
Macquarie Group's transfer this week of six renewable energy assets with a combined 17 gigawatt (GW) capacity to a newly established fund in its Macquarie Asset Management (MAM) arm did not happen on a whim.
It was the culmination of a multi-year strategy that has fundamentally changed the Australian-based global investment bank’s approach to green investment.
Initial backers of the new fund, named Macquarie Green Energy and Climate Opportunities (MGECO), include British pension funds LGPS Central and Border to Coast Pensions Partnership, as well as Australia's UniSuper, which announced Thursday it would contribute $US400 million ($625 million).
Spinning Macquarie Group assets into MAM is nothing new in itself, because Macquarie historically made investments from its Principal Finance arm that is housed within Macquarie Capital. The group uses funds from the wider Macquarie Group balance sheet to acquire assets.
