Erste Asset Management’s new 2025 Engagement & Voting Report is now available. It highlights how we fulfilled our role as an active investor over the past year—through dialogue with companies, consistent exercise of voting rights, and a further refined stewardship approach.
For us, sustainable investing doesn’t end with the selection of securities. An important part of Erste AM’s sustainability approach is to act responsibly as an investor and to support companies on their path toward greater sustainability, transparency, and good corporate governance.
That is exactly what the new Engagement & Voting Report 2025. In it, we look back on another eventful year of active ownership: featuring numerous dialogues with companies, engagements at the local and international levels, and the exercise of voting rights at more than 600 companies.
Key highlights from the 2025 Engagement & Voting Report:
- Exercised voting rights at over 600 companies and 670 annual shareholder meetings in 38 countries
- Approved amount of 10.8 billion euros
- 11.6% of votes were deliberately cast against management proposals
- Clear priorities for engagement in the areas of climate change, biodiversity, human capital, global standards, and good governance
- Erste AM plays a prominent role as a lead or co-lead investor in international initiatives such as Climate Action 100+, Nature Action 100, PRI Spring, and PRI Collaborative Sovereign Engagement on Climate Change
What does “active ownership” actually mean?
The overarching term is “active ownership,” which describes the practice of investors taking responsibility for actively influencing the companies in which they invest and their operations. The goal is to promote positive developments in the areas of social responsibility, environmental protection, transparency, and corporate governance through constructive dialogue and responsible action. This is achieved primarily in two ways: engagement and voting.
On the one hand, this can be achieved through engagement . Through structured formal and informal dialogue with companies, the goal is to positively influence corporate practices and conditions regarding environmental, social, and governance issues. This allows, for example, weaknesses in management’s handling of sustainability issues to be identified and addressed, and subsequently enables joint efforts to develop solutions for improvement.
The second key pillar involves voting—that is, the active exercise of one’s voting rights. Since 2017, Erste AM has been exercising voting rights on behalf of all publicly offered equity funds and institutional mandates. This ensures that the voting rights of clients—as indirect shareholders of the companies in which they invest—are exercised actively and responsibly. To be eligible for voting rights on behalf of a company, Erste AM must hold either more than 2 million euros in shares or 5% of the outstanding shares in its portfolio. The firm’s in-house voting policy serves as the framework for all voting decisions.
Key Figures at a Glance
In 2025, Erste AM exercised its voting rights at 670 annual shareholder meetings of 606 companies in 38 countries. The total value of shares represented by these votes was approximately 10.8 billion euros.
Shareholders deliberately voted against management’s proposal on 1 , 071 agenda items. This represents 11.6 percent of all votes cast. Issues such as shareholder rights, compensation policy, corporate governance, and the election and independence of supervisory board members were particularly frequent topics of focus.
Environmental and social issues also played an important role again at annual shareholder meetings. Many shareholder proposals addressed climate issues. In the U.S. in particular, there was also an increase in proposals related to artificial intelligence—mostly in connection with human rights, governance, or data protection.
Stewardship is becoming more systemic
A key focus in 2025 was the further development of the stewardship approach. Erste AM has formalized system-level engagement as an integral part of its strategy.
This means that, in addition to direct dialogue with portfolio companies, other stakeholders are also coming more into focus—such as regulatory authorities, standards-setting bodies, industry associations, government agencies, international organizations, and civil society actors.
Why is this important? Many sustainability challenges cannot be solved by individual companies acting alone. Climate change, biodiversity loss, and issues related to global standards affect entire economic sectors and market structures. A system-level approach is therefore intended to help address these issues more broadly and over the long term.
Governance: Progress in Home Markets
As a major institutional investor in Austria as well as in Central and Eastern Europe, Erste AM continues to place a strong emphasis on local engagement. Particularly in its home markets, its market position enables a constructive and effective dialogue with companies.
In 2025, concrete progress was made in governance initiatives. This included improvements in the independence of supervisory boards and key committees, in compensation structures, in diversity, and in embedding sustainability in corporate governance.
For example, a local engagement process led to the leadership of key supervisory board committees being structured to be more independent in the future. In addition, renewal and diversity on the supervisory board were strengthened, and the compensation policy was further developed—including a greater focus on long-term incentives, security, and ESG goals.
Biodiversity: From Corporate Dialogue to Broader Impact
Biodiversity remained a strategic priority in 2025 as well. Erste AM continued its role as co-lead investor in Nature Action 100, focusing in particular on dialogue with Bayer AG.
Over the course of the year, Bayer confirmed that it was working on a comprehensive nature strategy. The company also acknowledged that there was room for improvement in its nature-related disclosures and plans to further develop these in future reporting cycles. Bayer is also working on an expanded methodology for assessing the nature-related impacts of its crop protection portfolio.
This example shows that commitment can help companies assess their impact on nature and biodiversity in a more structured way, report on it more transparently, and manage it more effectively over the long term.
Please note: The companies mentioned in this article have been selected as examples and do not constitute investment recommendations.
First Sovereign Engagement: Dialogue with Canada
In 2025, Erste AM participated in its first “sovereign engagement.” In this type of engagement, the dialogue focuses not on a single company, but on a country or government institutions.
Specifically, Erste AM joined the PRI Canada Sovereign Engagement initiative. The initiative focuses on national climate policy, credible transition pathways, and the disclosure of climate-related risks at the government level.
Over the course of the year, Erste AM took on an expanded role: As a co-lead investor at the federal level, it is facilitating dialogue with the Canadian federal government on behalf of the participating investors. As part of the initiative, structured discussions took place with members of the Canadian Parliament and representatives of the Department of Finance Canada.
Further Develop Engagement Skills
In addition to its own activities, Erste AM is also working to further develop engagement expertise within the investment community.
The Engagement Think Tank, launched in 2024, grew to 36 members in 2025. The group includes both large and smaller asset owners and asset managers from various regions—from Asia to the United States.
The goal is to create a trust-based platform for exchange, peer learning, and the further development of effective stewardship and engagement practices. After all, one thing is clear: many sustainability issues can be addressed more effectively when investors pool their knowledge, experiences, and expectations.
ESG Backlash: Greater Clarity on Long-Term Commitment
The past year was also marked by growing criticism of ESG and sustainable investing. For Walter Hatak, Head of Responsible Investments at Erste Asset Management, however, this trend has also brought something into focus: it helps distinguish genuine long-term commitment from short-term positioning.
Especially in a climate of political polarization, it becomes clear that stewardship requires more than just individual dialogues with companies. Collaboration with policymakers, investors, the academic community, and other relevant stakeholders is crucial—with the goal of promoting long-term sustainable outcomes for clients.
Conclusion: Engagement is a long-term process
The 2025 Engagement & Voting Report shows that active ownership can be an effective tool for supporting companies in their sustainable transformation. Progress is made where clear expectations, ongoing dialogue, and consistent voting behavior work together.
For Erste AM, therefore, engagement remains a long-term process—with the goal of reducing risks, promoting sustainable value creation, and reporting transparently on progress, challenges, and results.
Learn more in the 2025 Engagement & Voting Report!
Please note: investing in securities involves risks as well as opportunities.
Legal disclaimer
This document is an advertisement. Unless indicated otherwise, source: Erste Asset Management GmbH. The language of communication of the sales offices is German and the languages of communication of the Management Company also include English.
The prospectus for UCITS funds (including any amendments) is prepared and published in accordance with the provisions of the InvFG 2011 as amended. Information for Investors pursuant to § 21 AIFMG is prepared for the alternative investment funds (AIF) administered by Erste Asset Management GmbH pursuant to the provisions of the AIFMG in conjunction with the InvFG 2011.
The currently valid versions of the prospectus, the Information for Investors pursuant to § 21 AIFMG, and the key information document can be found on the website www.erste-am.com under “Mandatory publications” and can be obtained free of charge by interested investors at the offices of the Management Company and at the offices of the depositary bank. The exact date of the most recent publication of the prospectus, the languages in which the fund prospectus or the Information for Investors pursuant to Art 21 AIFMG and the key information document are available, and any other locations where the documents can be obtained are indicated on the website www.erste-am.com. A summary of the investor rights is available in German and English on the website www.erste-am.com/investor-rights and can also be obtained from the Management Company.
The Management Company can decide to suspend the provisions it has taken for the sale of unit certificates in other countries in accordance with the regulatory requirements.
Note: You are about to purchase a product that may be difficult to understand. We recommend that you read the indicated fund documents before making an investment decision. In addition to the locations listed above, you can obtain these documents free of charge at the offices of the referring Sparkassen bank and the offices of Erste Bank der oesterreichischen Sparkassen AG. You can also access these documents electronically at www.erste-am.com.
Our analyses and conclusions are general in nature and do not take into account the individual characteristics of our investors in terms of earnings, taxation, experience and knowledge, investment objective, financial position, capacity for loss, and risk tolerance. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of the future performance of a fund.
Please note: Investments in securities entail risks in addition to the opportunities presented here. The value of units and their earnings can rise and fall. Changes in exchange rates can also have a positive or negative effect on the value of an investment. For this reason, you may receive less than your originally invested amount when you redeem your units. Persons who are interested in purchasing units in investment funds are advised to read the current fund prospectus(es) and the Information for Investors pursuant to § 21 AIFMG, especially the risk notices they contain, before making an investment decision. If the fund currency is different than the investor’s home currency, changes in the relevant exchange rate can positively or negatively influence the value of the investment and the amount of the costs associated with the fund in the home currency.
We are not permitted to directly or indirectly offer, sell, transfer, or deliver this financial product to natural or legal persons whose place of residence or domicile is located in a country where this is legally prohibited. In this case, we may not provide any product information, either.
Please consult the corresponding information in the fund prospectus and the Information for Investors pursuant to § 21 AIFMG for restrictions on the sale of the fund to American or Russian citizens.
It is expressly noted that this communication does not provide any investment recommendations, but only expresses our current market assessment. Thus, this communication is not a substitute for investment advice.
This document does not represent a sales activity of the Management Company and therefore may not be construed as an offer for the purchase or sale of financial or investment instruments.
Erste Asset Management GmbH is affiliated with the Erste Bank and austrian Sparkassen banks.
Please also read the “Information about us and our securities services” published by your bank.
More on the topic
Signs of a slowdown: more scope for central banks?
Economic and political uncertainty is increasing. Nevertheless, inflation is falling in the USA and the eurozone. This increases the scope for central banks to react to a slowdown in economic growth by lowering key interest rates.