Shareholder engagement is a core component of the SBI’s fiduciary responsibility to safeguard and enhance the value of the assets under its management. As a long-term steward of capital, the SBI recognizes that corporate decisions related to strategy, capital allocation, and material sustainability factors can directly affect financial performance and long-term value.
The SBI maintains an informed and constructive dialogue with portfolio companies to communicate expectations and to better understand how companies oversee key issues that may affect long-term financial performance. These engagements are intended to support sound governance and risk management practices that contribute to improved risk-adjusted returns across the portfolio.
The SBI has a long-standing history of utilizing engagement to improve corporate disclosure on material topics, including drug pricing, board composition, and public health risks. In 2025, the SBI partnered with Segal Marco Advisors to formalize its engagement program. This collaboration focuses on identifying areas of concern, improving the disclosure of long-term risks, and establishing sustained relationships with portfolio companies.
In 2024, the Stewardship team and an external fixed income manager engaged a state-owned energy company regarding its governance and methane emissions. This marked the SBI’s first formal engagement conducted through debt holdings. The dialogue focused on the company’s emissions-reduction plans and the financial materiality of climate-related disclosures.
The SBI provided research demonstrating that methane-abatement investments can be cost-effective and reduce both operational and financial risks. Management acknowledged the infrastructure challenges involved and noted that future capital allocation must balance operational needs with transition objectives.
Following this engagement, the company published its inaugural sustainability report and committed to reporting standards aligned with the TCFD and ISSB. The SBI continues to monitor the company’s progress to ensure alignment with the long-term interests of the portfolio.