Konica Minolta named to all ESG Indexes adopted by the GPIF and included in the FTSE4Good Index Series for 16 consecutive years

| 31 July 2019

Konica Minolta, Inc. (Konica Minolta) has been named to all of the four responsible investment (RI) indexes adopted by Japan’s Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF)[1]. Of these indexes, the company has been selected for the FTSE Blossom Japan Index, the MSCI Japan ESG Select Leaders Index, and the MSCI Japan Empowering Women Index for three consecutive years since their establishment in 2017, and for the S&P/JPX Carbon Efficient Index consecutively since its establishment in 2018. Konica Minolta has also been included in the FTSE4Good Index Series, which is one of the most well-known RI indexes in the world, for 16 consecutive years.


Konica Minolta’s commitment to sustainability

Konica Minolta remains committed to developing innovations that bring new values beneficial to the global environment and society, and that also support business growth. In doing so, the company aims to become a digital company with insight into implicit challenges, namely, a company capable of contributing to a sustainable society by continuing evolution together with customers through innovations.

Under this vision, Konica Minolta has developed cutting-edge solutions, which include: Care Support Solution, a system that changes the way care is given with the company’s core technologies combined with state-of-the-art digital technology; Workplace Hub that helps companies promote work-style reform with advanced information technology; and Gas Monitoring Solution designed to enhance safety and contribute to environmental protection by visualising gas leaks.

Konica Minolta also believes that the company can significantly contribute to solving global social issues such as environmental and energy problems by sharing its proprietary technologies and know-how widely with external stakeholders. Building on its efforts to enhance both environmental and corporate values in cooperation with customers and suppliers, Konica Minolta has launched the Environmental Digital Platform vision, which aims to extend environmental efforts by digitising the environmental know-how it has offered individually so far. By encouraging many stakeholders to join the platform, Konica Minolta hopes to accumulate and share a wider range of environmental technologies and know-how, thereby drastically reducing environmental impacts throughout society.

Outline of each Index

The FTSE4Good Index Series, which was introduced by FTSE Russell, a UK-based global index provider, lists companies around the world demonstrating strong environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices, and provides a means for investors and RI funds to select companies with good sustainability prospects for investment. The FTSE Blossom Japan Index is designed to include Japanese companies with excellent performance in ESG practices, and was selected by GPIF, the world’s largest public pension fund, as one of the ESG indexes for its passive investment strategy.

The MSCI Japan ESG Select Leaders Index and the MSCI Japan Empowering Women Index are ESG indexes introduced in 2017 by MSCI Inc., a US-based global ESG research and index provider. These indexes were also adopted by the GPIF. Konica Minolta was included in the MSCI Japan ESG Select Leaders Index in recognition of its performance in “Human Capital Development”

The S&P/JPX Carbon Efficient Index was launched jointly by S&P Dow Jones Indices, one of the world’s major index providers, and Japan Exchange Group, Inc. Using TOPIX as a benchmark, it is designed to reduce exposure to high-carbon companies while maintaining the risk/return profile similar to that of their benchmarks. This index, too, was selected by GPIF as an environmental index.

Reference: Evaluation by external parties

Konica Minolta is currently included in global ESG indexes and is ranked high in the CSR ratings, as shown below.

Index

Description

Dow Jones Sustainability Index (USA, Switzerland)

World Index (DJSI World) : Included in the index consecutively since 2012

Asia Pacific Index (DJSI Asia Pacific) : Included in the index consecutively since 2009

FTSE4Good Index Series (UK)

Included in the index consecutively since 2003

FTSE Blossom Japan Index (UK)

Included in the index since its establishment in 2017

MSCI ESG Leaders Indexes (USA)

Included in the index consecutively since 2010

*No information is available as to whether or not the company was included in the indexes prior to 2010.

*The index was renamed from MSCI Global SRI in 2017.

MSCI Japan ESG Select Leaders Index (USA)

Included in the index since its establishment in 2017

MSCI Japan Empowering Women Index (USA)

Included in the index since its establishment in 2017

S&P/JPX Carbon Efficient Index

Included in the index consecutively since its establishment in 2018

Corporate Knights (Canada)

Ranked among the Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World (January 2019)

oekom (Germany)

Maintained the highest Prime Status since 2011

Ethibel (Belgium)

Selected for the investment universe of Ethibel Pioneer and Ethibel Excellence (June 2019)

CDP (UK)

Awarded the title of Supplier Engagement Leader for two consecutive years since 2018

THE INCLUSION OF KONICA MINOLTA, INC. IN ANY MSCI INDEX, AND THE USE OF MSCI LOGOS, TRADEMARKS, SERVICE MARKS OR INDEX NAMES HEREIN, DO NOT CONSTITUTE A SPONSORSHIP, ENDORSEMENT OR PROMOTION OF KONICA MINOLTA, INC. BY MSCI OR ANY OF ITS AFFILIATES. THE MSCI INDEXES ARE THE EXCLUSIVE PROPERTY OF MSCI. MSCI AND THE MSCI INDEX NAMES AND LOGOS ARE TRADEMARKS OR SERVICE MARKS OF MSCI OR ITS AFFILIATES.

[1] The Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF) is an independent administrative agency responsible for the management and administration of the employees’ pension and national pension reserve funds under control of the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.

 

About Konica Minolta, Inc.

Konica Minolta, Inc. is a global technology company that provides innovative solutions to businesses and society. With its strengths in the combination of its core technologies in advanced imaging, optics, sensing, materials and nano-processing, Konica Minolta is committed to creating new values supporting customers to address challenges in their operations and work processes. Advancing its expertise in digital technologies, the company has been going through business transformation into a digital company, with insights into implicit challenges across the board as ‘One Konica Minolta’ in the era of Internet of the Things (IoT). Konica Minolta is also active in open innovation through various collaborations and alliances with academic, industrial and entrepreneurial partners.Headquartered in Tokyo, Konica Minolta has its Group companies in 50 countries with over 44,300 employees and offers products and services in 150 countries around the world.


About Konica Minolta Business Solutions Europe


Konica Minolta Business Solutions Europe GmbH, based in Langenhagen, Germany, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Konica Minolta Inc., Tokyo, Japan. With its unique expertise in imaging, data processing and data-based decision making, Konica Minolta creates relevant solutions for its customers - small and medium-sized businesses, large enterprises and public sector - and solves issues faced by society.


As a digital workplace solution provider, Konica Minolta helps its clients to identify and unlock the potential digitalisation holds and reach the next level in the digital maturity of their organisation by rethinking the workplace. In support of an ‘Intelligent connected workplace’, Konica Minolta offers cloud, IT, managed print and video solution services for remote working, collaboration, workflow management and automation and security. The company’s success in driving transformation is also confirmed by IDC, since the ‘IDC MarketScape: Worldwide Print Transformation 2023 Vendor Assessment’ has named Konica Minolta a “Leader” in print transformation. Konica Minolta has been a Microsoft Global Managed Partner since 2021.


Konica Minolta's Igniting Print Possibilities offering helps printers, converters and brand owners maximise workflow automation to increase efficiency. The company delivers consultancy in all communication matters as well as top-of-the-line production, packaging as well as label printers. Its finishing devices create print products that stand out and create added value. Konica Minolta has established itself as the production printing market leader for more than a decade in Europe (InfoSource).


For an increasing number of organisations, success today is more than the narrow definition of financial prosperity – it also includes protecting the environment and having a positive impact on their workforce as well as the societies they are embedded in. With its commitment to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Konica Minolta has pledged to consistently pursue its sustainability and social responsibility goals.


The company has been repeatedly recognised for its rich history of social contribution as well as for working towards achieving the SDGs throughout its business and supply chain. Konica Minolta received a GOLD Level Recognition Medal in the EcoVadis sustainability ratings for 2024.


For its remote services, Konica Minolta was awarded the prestigious ‘Buyers Lab (BLI) 2023-2024 Pacesetter Award in Remote Service for the Western European market’ from Keypoint Intelligence.


Konica Minolta Business Solutions Europe is represented by subsidiaries and distributors in more than 80 countries in Europe, Central Asia, the Middle East and Africa. With more than 8,800 employees (as of April 2024), Konica Minolta Europe earned net sales of over EUR 2.13 billion in financial year 2023/2024.


Worldwide, the company has over 40,000 employees and is operating in over 150 countries.


For more information, please visit https://www.konicaminolta.eu/eu-en/news and follow Konica Minolta on LinkedIn, Instagram and YouTube.


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