Nikko AM hires ESG trio to bolster global sustainable investment team

investmentweek.co.uk:

All three hires are based in Singapore and report to global head of sustainable investment Natalia Rajewska.

The firm has hired Sheela Veerappan as global ESG integration lead, Bhaveer Shah as global environmental lead and Alexandre Tessler as ESG regulations specialist.

In her new role, Veerappan will be responsible for «acting as a nexus» between the global sustainable team and investment management teams to «enrich and deepen» ESG integration frameworks, processes and solutions.  

She has a 15-year background in sustainable investment and joined from abrdn, where she most recently worked as senior sustainable investment specialist.

Prior to joining abrdn, Veerappan was head of Australia and New Zealand at UN Principles for Responsible Investment.

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In his global environmental lead role, Shah will be responsible for driving the firm's environmental investment approach, working closely with investment management teams on areas such as decarbonisation, biodiversity and environmental disclosures.

He previously served four years at MSCI, where he was the vice president of applied climate and ESG investment research, responsible for research addressing ESG and climate integration across asset classes.

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Both joined the firm on 4 December, following the addition of Alexandre Tessler as ESG regulations specialist on 16 October.

Tessler is now responsible for supporting the firm's reporting and oversight to evolving ESG regulations in EMEA and beyond.

Before joining Nikko AM, he was an ESG client portfolio manager at Candriam for just over three years. He also worked as assistant investment