Overview

The Sustainable & Institutional Product team, which reports into the FT Global Head of Product Strategy, primarily covers the following main activities:

SI Product governance: managing the ESG Product Approval Process (“EPAG”) for EU SI products, Annual EPAG fund reviews, UK SDR fund labelling & disclosures, updating ManCo and EU funds’ Boards, ESG fund naming, coordination with other regions & product teams on SI Products… SI Product strategy & innovation: generation of new ideas, product strategy & design, in partnership with Specialised Investment Managers (“SIMs”), Sales teams & FT clients. Institutional product development: ensuring that sub-advisory accounts are aligned with FT standards, providing insight & solutions to complex / non-standard institutional mandates. SI business support: managing national ESG fund labels for commercial development (application, audit, ongoing governance…), supporting RFP teams on specific SI / Product related queries.

What are the ongoing responsibilities of a Sustainable Investment Regulatory Specialist?

The role would primarily be responsible for the following tasks:

  • Subject Matter Expert (SME) in SI regulations applicable to Products
    • EU SFDR
    • EU Taxonomy Regulation
    • ESMA fund naming guidelines
    • MIFID 2 Sustainability product governance
    • UK SDR
    • UK TCFD

 

  • ESG product development & definition
    • Actively participating in the validation process of new products and services, in coordination with other internal stakeholders / departments, including the EPAG (ESG Product Advisory Group) meetings and ad hoc discussions.
    • Reviewing EPAG forms / “Qvidian” content (content management system used for SFDR disclosures), quality control review from an ESG technical / regulatory standpoint, to achieve the level of detail and precision/clarity needed to move it into prospectus/pre-contractual & website disclosures.
    • Point of contact for Investment Teams for clarifying ESG process/strategy/methodology and related public messaging, in line with SI regulations.
    • Providing support from time to time to Compliance, Investment Management, Investment Management Oversight and Distribution on specific ESG technical interpretations.

 

  • ESG Disclosures
    • Responsible for reviewing the applicability and consistency of ESG content produced by the investment teams for the pre-contractual documentation (prospectus including SFDR annexes, website disclosures and periodic disclosures (SFDR annual reports) for funds, together with other functional stakeholders (e.g. Compliance).
    • Reviewing SFDR annual reports to ensure they are aligned with pre-contractual disclosures and working closely with Global Compliance team to ensure sustainable indicators / PAIs are properly reported and disclosed.
    • Providing services to funds domiciled across Europe (e.g. Luxembourg, Ireland and the UK) and support for other regions (APAC, North America…) on SI regulations and how they apply to local Products (providing a coordinated & consistent approach).
  • Other
    • Primary point of contact with regulatory and trade associations in Europe (EFAMA, ALFI, Irish funds, IA, Eurosif etc.) on SI regulation / matters affecting products, in coordination with EMEA Legal teams.

 

What ideal qualifications, skills & experience would help someone to be successful?

  • Recognised University Degree (preferably in Law or Economics)
  • Professional qualification, certification or equivalent in a Sustainable Finance related discipline
  • Professional experience in the financial sector – preferably in relation to ESG Regulatory risk and/or Compliance and/or Consultancy in ESG regulations
  • A solid understanding, experience and practise of the evolving SI regulatory environment in Europe (EU SFDR, EU TR, UK SDR, UK TCFD,…) applicable to products
  • Strong understanding of key Sustainable Investment strategies & approaches
  • Ability to work closely with Investment teams and other internal stakeholders and to influence them.
  • Solid understanding of investment strategies / capabilities.
  • Strong coordination & project management skills.
  • Very good presentation skills.
  • Fluent in English (another language a plus)