Ninety One names new Chief Sustainability Officer

Investment manager Ninety One has promoted Daisy Streatfeild from her role as sustainability director to Chief Sustainability Officer, effective 1 October. 

Streatfeild replaces Nazmeera Moola in the sustainability hot seat after Moola was appointed Chief Commercial Officer for Private Markets. Moola remains engaged in oversight of sustainability through her role on Ninety One’s Sustainability Committee.

As CSO it is Streatfeild’s role to oversee the implementation of the firm-wide sustainability strategy and policies, advocacy, engagement and stewardship, and sustainable product development.  

A long career in sustainable investment

Prior to joining Ninety One in 2022, Streatfeild was the Investor Practices Programme Director at IIGCC where she led their Paris Aligned Investment Initiative, and the development of the Net Zero Investment Framework. 

Before that, she was the advisor on sustainable infrastructure investment at Inter American Development Bank and has held various roles related to climate and investment in the UK Civil Service. She is passionate about making financial markets work to support development.

In addition to her role at Ninety One, she also sits on the Climate Action 100+ steering committee. Streatfeild has an Master of Science in Environment and Development from the London School of Economics and Political Science.

Ninety One sustainability commitments

Ninety One’s most recent Sustainability and Stewardship report reaffirmed the organisation’s  commitment to sustainability “without caveat” despite a rowing back of net zero targets by some of the largest investment managers.

The company’s Founder and CEO Hendrik du Toit said: “We believe that delivering the best investment outcomes for clients over the long term depends on securing a prosperous future, which demands a sustainable future. For us, sustainability is not a matter of politics, the ebb and flow of popular opinion or sanctimonious virtue signalling. It is a matter of fiduciary duty.”

The company launched its Emerging Markets Transition Debt strategy in April 2024, which now has around £355m in assets. This strategy finances private sector companies and projects with both listed and unlisted debt, targeting decarbonisation opportunities in emerging economies often overlooked by global capital.

Internally, the company says it has refined its environmental data collection processes and is on track to meet its emissions reduction target; it has reduced Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 61% versus its 2019 baseline and has a target to reduce absolute Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 46% by 2030.

Beyond its portfolios, more than £2m in corporate social investment is focusing on education, skills training and conservation. The company says further progress rests on showing how sustainability aligns with long-term performance, with a pledge to refine its frameworks and deepen its engagements – especially on nature-related risks – over the coming year.