Our goal: Strengthen our ESG data capabilities and transparency in reporting to enable more informed sustainable investment decisions.
The consideration of ESG factors can be integrated into our sustainable investing approach across all actively managed asset classes. The integration approach is determined by the specific investment process of the investment teams within the underlying asset class.
Our Sustainable Investing Oversight Committee has worked with each investment team to categorize alignment with our internal sustainable investing continuum. This continuum outlines our various approaches to sustainable investing to help assure clients can make informed investment decisions. The classifications are as follows: ESG Integration Foundational, ESG Integration Enhanced Features, Thematic, and Impact.
As a global asset manager, we’ve focused on converting and launching new funds for clients whom sustainability is a key consideration and to comply with greater expectations of sustainability standards from regulators.
Stewardship and engagement activities have always been essential to our role as investors. We believe by encouraging corporations to improve long-term stewardship of human, natural, and financial resources, we can play an active role in helping deliver better outcomes for our clients.
Our goal: Expand transparency and reporting of our General Account investments’ impact.
Principal issued our first sustainability bond in August 2021 as part of our commitment to integrating and advancing ESG practices and initiatives.
The bond, issued in the amount of $600 million, financed eligible social and environmental assets such as affordable housing, green buildings, energy efficiency, and renewable energy. Annually we release our
To govern the process for this sustainability bond and future issues of green, social, and sustainability bonds, Principal created the Principal Sustainable Financing Framework (the Framework). According to the Framework, eligible assets may include existing or future investments that meet defined criteria to help advance the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (U.N. SDGs). A business is only eligible if 90% or more of its revenue is derived from activities and criteria that align with U.N. SDGs. Principal obtained an independent Second-Party Opinion on its Sustainable Financing Framework. For more detail, see the Second-Party Opinion from Sustainalytics.
We take a balanced approach to incorporating sustainability factors into our General Account investment process. Our investment teams integrate sustainability considerations across asset classes.
Our fixed income teams track progress of ESG scores for their portfolios, looking for improvement while retaining core portfolio construction principles. Our real estate lending teams evaluate climate impacts while investing. Our private real estate team has laid out sustainability goals encompassing a variety of metrics. Sustainability analysis forms part of the risk metrics presented to the Principal Life Investment Committee.
This comprehensive approach helps us build more resilient portfolios while working toward improved sustainability outcomes.
57% of AUM classified as sustainable investment products
60% of assets under management of the general account utilized ESG integration
$330 million In 2025, we invested $330 in assets that we believe meet the criteria for inclusion as sustainable investments to back our sustainable bond issuance.
2025 Sustainability report
Read more about our commitment to sustainability.