At Instar, ESG has always been fundamental to how we invest, manage risk and opportunity across our platform and define our corporate purpose, which is to enrich people’s lives. Instar’s third annual ESG report highlights our strategy, initiatives and measurements across our platform that contribute to long-term value creation for our stakeholders and the communities in which we operate. Read the full report here.
Our middle market investment strategy focuses on distinctive, scalable businesses delivering differentiated essential services and solutions to partners, customers and communities.
Instar’s ESG policy integrates ESG considerations throughout our investment and ownership lifecycle with a focus on driving the value of our portfolio companies, future-proofing our platform and enabling a more sustainable, equitable and resilient future. We focus on the sustainability themes that matter the most to our business, our people and our stakeholders, including governance and ethics; stakeholder engagement; climate change; health and safety; and diversity, equity and inclusion.
Instar is a signatory to the United Nations-supported Principles for Responsible Investment.
We strive to align our ESG initiatives with the relevant United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and seek to invest in companies that are the best at what they do and essential to the functioning, fairness, health and economic prosperity of society. Our purpose as an organization is to enrich people’s lives through investing, engaging with and supporting our employees and creating value for stakeholders in a manner that contributes to broader social and economic progress. It reflects our conviction in putting people first and elevating sustainability as a core component of our culture and business strategy.
Our investment stewardship provides a strong governance foundation and strategic guidance to help the great companies we invest in become even better.
We evaluate and integrate ESG considerations and impacts throughout our investment process and ongoing portfolio management initiatives, including monitoring material portfolio-wide and sector-specific risks and identifying opportunities for each company to unleash their full potential to build value.*
Connectedness and belonging are inherent to our corporate culture and purpose.
We embrace diversity, equity and inclusion for innovation and growth. We promote equality of opportunity and seek different perspectives to challenge conventional approaches and continuously improve our company’s performance and progress. We believe that diversity and inclusion help us drive innovation, make better decisions, achieve effective stewardship of our business and portfolio companies and enable our people to thrive.
*Instar Asset Management Inc., is offering funds which promote environmental and / or social characteristics as further described in the relevant funds’ offering documentation as well as periodic and / or annual reports. Funds currently managed by Instar Asset Management Inc. integrate a sustainability risk assessment in line with Article 6 SFDR and consequently do not take into account the European Union’s criteria for environmentally sustainable economic activities.
Finding Value: The North American Infrastructure Opportunity
Gregory Smith of InstarAGF outlines how increasing urbanisation and factors such as the drive for green energy production and distribution are creating opportunities for investors.
Increasing Canada’s Capacity for Economic Growth and Innovation
Building and modernizing Canada’s essential infrastructure structures and services for the 21st century is a critical economic and social imperative.
Localization: Meeting the 21st Century’s needs
Driven by technology, the move towards decentralisation is upending the traditional top-down model of infrastructure development, writes InstarAGF president and chief executive Gregory J. Smith.
InstarAGF on the Hunt for Infrastructure Investments
Gregory Smith, President and CEO of InstarAGF Asset Management, tells BNN he’s on the hunt for more infrastructure assets, in particular, underfunded municipal projects.
Fostering Innovation in Social Infrastructure
Gregory J. Smith, president and CEO, InstarAGF Asset Management, calls for a procurement revolution to unlock much-needed funding.
Canada Roundtable: Time to Invest at Home?
Canada’s new government is making infrastructure spending a priority to boost the economy. Four industry professionals and Joel Kranc explore how this might affect prospects for private investors.
Rethinking Infrastructure (LAPF)
While more institutions are creating separate allocations for infrastructure, capital deployment is lagging behind. Infrastructure pioneer Gregory Smith of InstarAGF asset management tells us why… and how investors should be thinking about the asset class.
Roundtable Canada: Distinctly Canadian
Six investment professionals sat down with Kalliope Gourntis to discuss what Canada has done right, what it can do better, and how it has managed to distinguish itself from a general ‘North American’ category when it comes to infrastructure.
Rethinking Infrastructure (BPM)
In the early 2000s, I oversaw the establishment of the first private infrastructure fund in Canada, a process that included defining infrastructure as an investment opportunity and educating the market on the merits of these ‘boring to barely interesting’ assets.
BNN The Close: Gregory Smith
Porter Aviation Holdings is selling it passenger terminal at Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport. The buyer is Nieuport Aviation, a consortium of Canadian and international infrastructure equity investors, including InstarAGF. BNN discusses the deal with Gregory Smith, President and CEO, InstarAGF.