In a bid to go green, Stichting Pensioenfonds ABP, the biggest pension fund in Europe has exited €10 billion ($10.8 billion) worth of liquid assets in coal, oil and gas. Chairman of ABP’s board of trustees Harmen van Wijnen informed a leading media house in an interview that the last bonds and shares the fund owned were sold in the year’s first quarter.
ABP said that this was a necessary step after their efforts to engage with fossil-fuel producers to get them to reduce greenhouse gas emissions were ineffective. However, around €4.8 billion of investments related to oil and gas remain in the fund’s portfolio as of the end of March. These include holdings in unlisted companies, hedge funds or private equity. ABP would take a longer time to exit these assets as they are bound by long-term contracts.