2019 Breckinridge Sustainability Report - Report - Page 6
A LETTER FROM OUR PRESIDENT
As an investment grade fixed income manager, Breckinridge is focused on
the long term, making careful choices in the way we invest. Indicative of this
is our integration of environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors into
our investment process. We believe ESG integration provides us a long-term,
forward-looking perspective and a more comprehensive assessment of risk. It
helps us identify bond issuers that are operating in a sustainable manner today
and are preparing for the material issues that may affect them in the future.
Peter Coffin
President
At bottom, buying a bond is lending money, and in the U.S. a majority of
lending occurs through the bond market. As the U.S. fixed income market has
swelled to $42 trillion2 in bonds outstanding, investors now have a wide array
of fixed income products accessible to them and trading is occurring at an
accelerated pace. Today, investors can move with relative ease from one fixed
income strategy to another. That certainly has its advantages, especially for
more tactical investors. There is a trade-off, however, as that ease may make
investors more short-term in their thinking. This diminishes the connection
between borrowers and lenders that is important for prudent credit selection. At
Breckinridge, we are working to counter that trend, and to be more thoughtful—
indeed, more intentional—with our investing.
As a part of our ESG integration efforts, we also engage with
a number of the bond issuers in which we invest. In doing
so, our goals are to gain a better sense of the caliber of our
indeed, more intentional—with our investing.
issuers’ management teams and to gain a more holistic
understanding of an organization’s character and culture. We
firmly believe that engagement enhances our analysis of an
issuer’s long-term creditworthiness and, thereby, our assessment of the relative
value of its bonds. While this level of interaction may be uncommon in today’s fastpaced bond markets, it ensures an acute understanding of where capital is being
invested; in our view, that’s how the business of lending should be conducted.
At Breckinridge, we are working to be more thoughtful—
Breckinridge also strives to be intentional in how we govern our own business.
A critical element of this is our commitment to remaining an independent,
employee-owned firm. Breckinridge has no exit strategy. Nor do we fixate on
targets for growth and profitability. Instead, our primary focus is on consistently
improving the caliber of our fixed income management. An equally critical
element is our commitment to corporate sustainability. Breckinridge is a Benefit
Corporation and a B Corp and sustainability is tightly woven within the fabric of
our organization. We believe these commitments keep us properly focused on
our clients, employees, communities and other stakeholders.
In the content that follows, we hope to illustrate how serious and thoughtful we
are in our sustainability commitments, now and for the long term. As always, we
welcome your thoughts and perspectives on our efforts.
Peter B. Coffin
2
SIFMA, as of 3Q18.
3