On March 23, Robeco and TEDA International (Holding) Corporation
Limited ("TEDA International", a strong partner with intimate
knowledge of the Chinese Market and based in the heart of Tianjin
Municipality, announced the establishment of Robeco TEDA (Tianjin)
Investment Management Company and the upcoming launch of their first
joint product, the Robeco TEDA Sustainable Private Equity Fund.
China has in recent years embarked on a policy of balanced and
sustainable growth. It has clearly indicated that economic growth
fuelled with ever increasing energy consumption and pollution is not
acceptable and it has set ambitious goals related to use of energy
and water, pollution and treatment of waste. Tianjin City, in the
economic heart of Northern China, has been designated by the Chinese
Central Government as a reform testing area Following this decision
to support Tianjin Binhai New Area to become a leading national
economic center, the area has seen enormous growth and financial
innovation. Tianjin has become the national center for private equity
and there are now more than 100 private equity and venture capital
funds registered in Tianjin.
Robeco and its subsidiary, Sustainable Asset Management (SAM), form a
strategic alliance to set up the leading platform for sustainability
investments. SAM, founded in 1995, is an asset management company
exclusively focused on sustainability investments, including
Sustainable Private Equity. SAM also partners with Dow Jones to
develop the globally recognized Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes
(DJSI).
TEDA International, a newly established company under Tianjin
Investment Holding, is mandated to hold all the financial assets
under the Tianjin Government and is responsible for the development
of all financial service related areas under Tianjin Government. TEDA
International, the financial holding arm of Tianjin government, is
developing into the national leader in sustainability as well as a
national centre for private equity investing by fully leveraging its
position in Tianjin, an ambition which is fully endorsed by Chinese
Government.
The Joint Venture Company will function as a platform for joint
business development in China, focused on Tianjin. The first product,
currently under development and to be launched soon is, the Robeco
TEDA Sustainable Private Equity Fund. The fund is the first Renminbi
denominated cross-border private equity fund with a focus on
sustainable investments .The Fund will be domiciled in Tianjin Binhai
New Area. The fund will invest in companies which develop products
and technologies that (i) increase productive use of energy, water
and other resources; (ii) reduce the impact on the environment (waste
and emissions); (iii) create economic value through lower costs with
a focus on Chinese companies.
George Möller, CEO of Robeco Group, says: "We are very excited to
partner with TEDA International to develop business in China. This
first initiative by the JV, the Robeco TEDA Sustainable Private
Equity Fund, invests not only in global leaders in sustainability,
but also in local Chinese companies which a focus on China
sustainability. The success of the Fund relies on the unique
positioning and capabilities of TEDA International and Robeco's
proven investment capabilities in sustainable private equity. Through
the Fund, Robeco and TEDA can share knowledge and experience to bring
the best investment return to investors. This is a great milestone
for Robeco, after setting up our Shanghai Representative Office in
late 2007 and receiving a QFII license and USD 15O million quota in
2OO8."
About Robeco
Robeco, established in Rotterdam in 1929, offers investment products
and services to institutional and private investors worldwide. It has
around EUR 111 billion in assets under management (at 31 December
2008).
The product range encompasses equity and fixed-income investments,
money-market funds, responsible investing and alternative
investments, including private equity, hedge funds and structured
products. The various strategies are managed from Rotterdam (head
office), Boston, Hong Kong, New York, Paris and Zurich.
To service institutional and business clients, Robeco has offices in
Bahrain, Belgium, China, France, Germany, Japan, Luxembourg,
Singapore, Spain, Switzerland and the United States. Robeco has a
banking license in France and the Netherlands, where it can sell its
products straight to private clients.
Robeco holds a 100% interest in Corestone (Zug, Switzerland), Harbor
Capital Advisors (Chicago, US) and Transtrend (Rotterdam, the
Netherlands). Robeco also holds a majority interest in SAM Group
(Zurich, Switzerland), a 49% interest in Canara Robeco Asset
Management (Mumbai, India) and a 40% interest in AIM (Rijmenam,
Belgium).
Robeco is part of Rabobank Group, one of the few privately owned
banks in the world with the highest credit ratings from Moody's and
Standard & Poor's. Furthermore, within the banking sector, Rabobank
is one of the global leaders in terms of corporate social
responsibility and sustainability.
Ronald Florisson, Robeco Corporate Communications
Office: +31 (0) 10 224 2810
Mobile: +31 (0) 653 831 586
E-mail: ronald.florisson@robeco.com
This announcement was originally distributed by Hugin. The issuer is
solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
