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    Targeting a positive impact through European bonds

    Targeting a positive impact through European bonds

    Why a euro impact bond strategy?
    The Responsible Horizons Euro Impact Bond strategy aims to be an important building block for investors who want to achieve a positive environmental and social impact alongside financial returns.
    Key benefits
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    Broad impact opportunities

    Broad impact opportunities

    Investors can fund specific projects with measurable environmental and social impacts through the significant and growing ‘use-of-proceeds' (also known as ‘impact’) bond market, assessed by Insight and verified by independent specialists

     

    In addition to impact bonds, the strategy can allocate up to 25% in ‘positive’ impact issuers, broadening the financial and impact opportunity set

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    Credit quality and income generation

    Credit quality and income generation

    Focusing on corporate debt potentially enables higher yields and income than portfolios that include sovereign issuance

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    Aiming for measurable impact

    Aiming for measurable impact

    We aim to report on the impact the strategy has achieved against clear key performance indicators, including a breakdown of the projects associated with its investments and alignment of its holdings to the UN Sustainable Development Goals

    Significant and growing impact bond opportunity1

    Impact projects for green, social and sustainable bonds (% exposure) 2

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    Our Responsible Horizons Euro Impact Bond strategy allows investors to utilise the unique opportunities available in public fixed income markets to achieve a transparent, diversified impact, while offering returns similar to corporate market.

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    Our Responsible Horizons Euro Impact Bond strategy allows investors to utilise the unique opportunities available in public fixed income markets to achieve a transparent, diversified impact, while offering returns similar to corporate market.

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    Fabien Collado, ESG Portfolio Manager
    Tackling greenwashing: Insight's impact bond ratings
    In 2024, Insight rated 536 unique impact bonds – with c.15% rated red, meaning they were excluded from our Responsible Horizons strategies.
    Our approach
    Our Responsible Horizons Euro Impact Bond strategy aims to enable investors to make an impact in a transparent way, by exploiting both use-of-proceeds impact bonds and positive impact issuers.

    ≥ 75%

    target investment in impact bonds

    Up to 25%

    target investment in positive impact issuers

    Article 9

    SFDR classification

    Assured

    'Towards sustainability' label4

    Meet some of the team

    Our strategy draws on expertise from Insight's European market, credit research, and responsible investment teams, including the individuals below.

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    Fabien Collado, CFA

    Responsible Investment - Senior Portfolio Manager

    Fabien Collado, CFA

    Responsible Investment - Senior Portfolio Manager

    Fabien joined Insight’s Fixed Income Group in August 2021, as an ESG Portfolio Manager. Prior to joining Insight, he spent almost 12 years at AXA Investment Managers, initially as a portfolio engineer. He was then an active fixed income fund manager focussing on euro credit strategies. Latterly, he was a global buy and maintain fund manager, with an ESG focus. Fabien graduated with a Masters degree in Finance from IÉSEG School of Management. He is also a CFA charterholder.

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    Lutz Engberding, CFA

    Portfolio Manager

    Lutz Engberding, CFA

    Portfolio Manager

    Lutz joined Insight in 2011. He worked as a Fixed Income Product Specialist before joining the European Fixed Income Team in February 2017. Lutz began his career in 2008 as an analyst at Merrill Lynch working in the fixed income department. He holds an MA in Economics from Homerton College, Cambridge and is a CFA charterholder.

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    Eleanor Austin

    Responsible Investment - Specialist

    Eleanor Austin

    Responsible Investment - Specialist

    Eleanor is part of Insight’s Responsible Investment Team, where she is responsible for leading sustainability analysis for investment opportunities across fixed income, supports the design of investment frameworks for sustainable solutions and supports engagement activity with issuing companies and issuing banks. She joined Insight in December 2024 from Aviva Investors, where she spent five years, latterly as a Senior ESG Credit Analyst, delivering on ESG sector research across utilities, financials and real estate, to identify material risks and promote environmental and social characteristics. She also led the SFDR Article 8 ESG integration processes for investment grade and buy and maintain strategies. Eleanor graduated from the University of Nottingham in 2019 with a BA in Politics and International Relations. She also holds the Level 4 Certificate in Investment Management from the CFA Society of the UK and has passed the Applied Responsible Investment course from the PRI Academy.

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    Jorg Soens, CFA

    Responsible Investment – Solutions Lead

    Jorg Soens, CFA

    Responsible Investment – Solutions Lead

    Jorg joined the Responsible Investment Team within the Fixed Income Group in March 2023, responsible for supporting the growth and development of responsible investment products and solutions at Insight. Jorg joined from Mercer, where he spent over five years as a Lead Investment Solutions Specialist and Currency Manager. Before this, he was a Portfolio Manager with KBC Fund Management. Jorg holds a Masters in Finance & Risk from University College Ghent, a Masters in MIS from University Hasselt and a Masters in General Management from Vlerick Business School. He is a CFA charterholder and holds the CFA Institute Certificate in ESG Investing.

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    James Fisher

    Responsible Investment - Analyst

    James Fisher

    Responsible Investment - Analyst

    James transferred to Insight’s Responsible Investment Team as a Responsible Investment - Analyst in January 2025. Prior to this, he was a Client Service Specialist within the Client Solutions Group, working directly alongside our client directors in the day-to-day servicing of a range of our institutional clients. He initially joined Insight in September 2022 on the graduate programme. James graduated from University of Sheffield, in 2022 and also holds the Investment Management Certificate (IMC) from the CFA Society of the UK.

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    Rhona Cormack

    Responsible Investment - Senior Specialist

    Rhona Cormack

    Responsible Investment - Senior Specialist

    Rhona joined the Responsible Investment Team within the Fixed Income Group in November 2021 and is responsible for leading Insight’s ESG engagement activities. She focuses on researching and delivering Insight’s engagement themes, with her areas of expertise including climate change and diversity and inclusion. Prior to joining Insight, Rhona had over six years’ experience in sustainability and climate change consulting, focusing on strategy and reporting advisory services. Rhona holds an MSc in Sustainability and a BA in Geography from the University of Leeds.

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