Tumelo has submitted its first “pass-through” votes for the asset manager SEI Investments, on behalf of the US-based pension plan, Taft-Hartley.
This is the first time Tumelo’s technologyy has been used to register a pass through vote by an active manager. Previously this has been used only with passive managers running large index funds.
‘Pass through’ votes allow asset owners, such as pension plans, to take a more active role in how their capital is stewarded. It effectively enables asset managers to split their vote, and register specific votes relating to individual holdings. This allow asset owners to vote in line with investment principles, particularly where they relate to environment, social or governance issues.
These votes were submitted using SEI’s Vote Choice solution, which is powered by Tumelo’s ProxySphere technology.
Taft-Hartley plans are US pension and welfare funds jointly managed by labour unions and employers. They’re designed to safeguard workers’ retirement assets while ensuring that decisions reflect union members’ principles.
Tumelo CEO Georgia Stewart says: “This is an exciting step forward for customised stewardship.
“Seeing the first Taft-Hartley plan casting votes through SEI’s Vote Choice solution represents meaningful progress in giving asset owners a voice that reflects their distinct investment principles.”
At the recent Council of Institutional Investors (CII) Conference in San Francisco, Jana Holt, SEI’s global head of stewardship, outlined how the firm’s new Vote Choice programme allows institutional clients to apply a consistent voting policy across select SEI funds in their portfolios.
Holt said: “Our clients don’t always want to get into the weeds of every single proxy. But they do want to select a policy that reflects their priorities — and Vote Choice makes that possible at scale.”