Osmosis Investment Management has appointed Stefanie Drews, President of Nikko Asset Management (Nikko AM), and Sandra Robertson, CIO and CEO of Oxford University Endowment Management (OUem), to its board of directors. Osmosis believes these changes will bring a wealth of industry experience and diverse new perspectives into the boardroom, supporting the company as its growth continues to accelerate. Osmosis’s assets under management recently surpassed $15 billion*, an annual increase of almost 70%.
These appointments follow the announcement of last month’s corporate action, which saw Nikko AM take a minority stake in Osmosis in a deal that included exclusive distribution rights of Osmosis’s products in the Asia region. The Oxford Endowment Fund, managed by OUem, was the first institutional external investor in Osmosis and has held an equity interest since 2012. It also recently seeded the latest fund launch in Osmosis’s Resource Efficient Core Equity Range.
Osmosis CEO Ben Dear said:
“It is an honour to welcome both Stefanie and Sandra to our senior leadership team. These appointments bring enormous talent, experience, and energy to our board of directors at a key inflection point for the business. Stefanie and Sandra are both vigorous advocates for sustainable investment, and I am sure that their vast knowledge and industry expertise will bring immense value to the firm.”
Nikko AM President Stefanie Drews commented:
“I am delighted to join the Osmosis board and bring our strategic partnership to the next level. Nikko AM is a pioneer in sustainable investing in Asia and a global signatory to the UK Stewardship Code, with close relationships and an in-depth familiarity of the preferences of investors in Asia and around the world. Standing at the nexus between the two companies empowers me to ensure we deliver the best for our clients as we grow both our businesses.”
OUem CIO Sandra Robertson commented:
“Osmosis has long been a leader in sustainable investment, delivering a comprehensive approach to incorporating improved environmental outcomes into equity portfolios for investors globally. The Oxford Endowment Fund became the group’s first institutional investor in 2010, and so it is a privilege to join the board to bring my experience and perspectives to the table at this exciting juncture.”
Biographies
About Stefanie Drews
Stefanie Drews was promoted to the role of President of Nikko Asset Management in April 2022. With a deep commitment to sustainable investing and a wealth of experience in international financial markets, she uses her strategic ability to lead the company’s expansion both within Japan and in key financial markets around the world.
The first female foreign leader of a Japanese financial firm, Stefanie’s rise is ground-breaking. Joining in 2014, she worked her way up, leading eight different functions, driving innovation, digitalisation, and integration firmwide from the bottom-up. She graduated from Oxford and Harvard and speaks five languages. Stefanie was the only member not based in the US to be selected by Pensions & Investments for its inaugural class of Influential Women in Institutional Investing and was later named CEO of the Year Japan, by Asia Asset Management.
About Sandra Robertson
Sandra is the founding Chief Investment Officer and Chief Executive Officer of OUem. As Chief Investment Officer, Sandra has discretion for all investment decisions. As Chief Executive Officer, she is responsible for implementing the overall strategy of the business and ensuring the success of the company. Sandra also sits on the Board of OUem. Sandra is a fellow at Oriel College, Oxford, a Commissioner for the Royal Commission of the Exhibition 1851, and a member of the Investment Committee of the Nature Conservancy.
Sandra has been recognised by several industry awards for her expertise in endowment investing, including a Private Equity Trailblazer award from Women in Private Equity, Power 100 CIO, Top 100 Most Influential Women in Finance, and 100 Women in Finance’s European Industry Leadership Award.
About Osmosis Investment Management
Osmosis launched in 2009 and is majority-owned by management and employees. The company currently manages over $15bn* in sustainable assets and is headquartered in London, with a growing global presence. Osmosis believes that targeting better risk-adjusted returns and delivering significant environmental impact do not need to be mutually exclusive endeavours. Through its unique Model of Resource Efficiency, the company has demonstrated that sustainability metrics, if quantifiable and objective in nature, can be applied to mainstream equity portfolios to generate alpha.
The Osmosis team of quantitative environmental analysts and portfolio managers is singularly focused on delivering three levels of impact. Better risk-adjusted returns, measurable environmental reductions, and an active engagement programme to promote better corporate environmental disclosure.
Osmosis counts Government Pension Funds, State Pension Funds, Insurance Companies, Foundations, Endowments, Family Offices, and Banks amongst their client roster spanning the UK, Europe, the Nordics, North and South America, Asia, and Australia.
*Assets under management and advisory as of 31 December 2023.
Additional Notes:
As an outcome of these latest appointments, Osmosis becomes the latest investment manager to have achieved gender equality in the boardroom. Recent research from Ernst & Young shows that UK financial services firms are leading their European counterparts in the acceleration of senior female appointments. According to its report, the current gender split of board members across UK financial services firms stands at 43% female and 57% male. This is marginally ahead of aggregate levels across Europe, which stands at 58% male and 42% female and is a five percentage-point increase from June 2022, when it was 63% male and 37% female.