Pimco has long been known as a top-notch fixed-income manager, but it quietly moved into stock strategies nearly 10 years ago. More recently, it has nearly silently moved into sustainable investing — not with a new product line, but by implementing this kind of research throughout the firm — becoming one of the first, and certainly the largest, of the large asset managers to regard investing with an eye toward long-term sustainability as a critical key to success.

Over the past few years, Pimco has become a leader in incorporating environmental, social, and governance, or ESG, factors throughout its investment processes. The reason: Bonds are long-term investments, and ESG risks often take years to materialise. If you own, say, a bond for a harbour-side commercial property, the site could be hit by storm surge long before your bond matures.