Yiannis Bartzilas joins Muzinich as Director of ESG
Yiannis Bartzilas joins Muzinich as Director of ESG
Yiannis Bartzilas has been hired by Muzinich as Director of ESG, as the Firm continues to strengthen and deepen its commitment to environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors.
Yiannis joins from Pimco, where he was an ESG and Climate Change specialist “I’m delighted to be joining such an experienced and client-focused credit specialist,” said Yiannis. “Given the increasing importance on ESG within credit investing, I’m excited about being able to undertake such a key role in helping the firm expand its research capabilities and further integrate ESG into its investment process.”
Based in London, Yiannis will work closely with the investment teams across the business as well as becoming an integral part of Muzinich’s various internal ESG groups.
The Firm has increased its ESG commitments in recent times. This includes the reclassification of the majority of its UCITS funds to Article 8 under the EU’s Sustainable Financial Disclosure Regulations1 and the transition of a fund to a low carbon portfolio with an Article 9 classification.
The Firm is a signatory of the Net Zero Asset Managers initiative,2 uses systematic integration of ESG factors into its investment process and reports on carbon emissions and carbon intensity in key mutual funds. The company has also incorporated an ESG due diligence and scoring framework into its private debt platform.
“As a firm, we have been onboarding accounts with socially responsible exclusions for over twenty years in line with client demand,” added Archie Beeching, Director of Responsible Investing. “Today, the urgency to address the climate crisis is becoming ever more apparent and we have a number of ambitions to develop new products which deliver genuine climate and ESG solutions. As regulatory obligations increase, the Firm will ensure we have the ESG resourcing and expertise necessary to be a leader in the market.”