British insurance group Aviva is looking to invest shareholder money in early-stage infrastructure projects, Financial Times reported citing Aviva CEO Amanda Blanc.
“We are looking at [whether] we invest our shareholder money as well as our policyholder money in some of these infrastructure investments at the very early stages,” Blanc told the publication in an interview.
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By GlobalDataAviva plans to use shareholder funds when the building project is in its pre-planning stage.
The idea is at an early stage, but Aviva could make a deal as early as this year, a source aware of the discussions told the publication.
The insurer plans to make these investments with a social purpose in mind such as building in deprived areas or fighting climate change.
Earlier Blanc had said: “As a major investor in UK infrastructure and real estate, Aviva has a significant opportunity and responsibility to ensure we finance projects that help the built environment in its transition to net zero.”
According to the source, a team at the group level would pick investment targets for the insurer, with inputs from Aviva Investors, the investment arm of Aviva.
The team is in the middle of preparing a three-year plan, which will see Aviva invest £10bn in local infrastructure and real estate, the report said.
The industry experts believe that regulatory changes in the right areas could support these moves but even with a reduction in the key capital buffer, changes to other parts of the rules could limit insurers and impact their investment strategy.
