Bentall Kennedy's Leadership in Investing Soundly and Sustainably Confirmed by 2016 GRESB Rankings

TORONTO, Sept. 8, 2016 /CNW/ - Bentall Kennedy is pleased to announce that it has, for the sixth consecutive year, been ranked among the top firms around the globe for its commitment to sustainable investing. The highly regarded rankings, announced yesterday, are issued by the Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark (GRESB), an industry-driven organization committed to assessing the sustainability performance of real estate companies and portfolios around the globe. Bentall Kennedy's rankings reflect its commitment to environmental, social and governance excellence as a top organizational priority.

GRESB conducts an annual survey that measures the ESG performance of listed and private property funds. This year, the survey included among 759 participants covering 66,000 assets with an aggregate value of USD $2.8 trillion. The survey results rank:

• MEPT/MEPT Edgemoor LP, the U.S. core open end fund strategy advised by Bentall Kennedy, as the top fund globally (Global Sector Leader) for the Private, Diversified - Residential/Office peer group, for the second year in a row.
  
  
• Bentall Kennedy Group as the top private firm in Canada, and among the top two companies in North America and the top three companies globally for the Private, Diversified peer group.

"Global participation in GRESB has exploded – from 198 participants in 2010 to 759 in 2016, covering 66,000 buildings," said Gary Whitelaw, Chief Executive Officer for the Bentall Kennedy Group. "The real estate world is catching on to what we've believed and applied for some time – that sustainability in real estate is a critical element to driving long-term value for our clients and tenants.  Investing soundly and sustainably continues to be the number one priority for Bentall Kennedy's professionals across North America."

To confirm its belief that sustainable investing delivers enhanced portfolio performance, Bentall Kennedy commissioned in 2014 an academic research study analyzing 10 years of financial performance data across Bentall Kennedy's managed office portfolio. The results, published in the September 2015 edition of the Journal of Portfolio Management, provide compelling evidence that buildings with sustainable certification outperform similar non-green buildings.

GRESB ranks companies and funds on sustainability performance in a number of categories including management practices, reductions in measured energy consumption, water consumption, waste to landfill, CO2 emissions, and improvements in employee training programs and remuneration policies. The high GRESB rankings achieved by Bentall Kennedy affirm our commitment to responsible property investing. 

"GRESB's focus on sustainability leadership aligns very strongly with the core values of both Bentall Kennedy and the broader Sun Life Investment Management group of companies," said Whitelaw. "With the global GRESB average improving, and competition in this space increasing, we're extremely proud to maintain our consistent high rankings."

About Bentall Kennedy

Bentall Kennedy, a Sun Life Investment Management company, is one of the 30 largest global real estate investment advisors and one of North America's foremost providers of real estate services. Bentall Kennedy serves the interests of more than 550 institutional clients and investors managing approximately $43 billion of assets across 60 million square feet of office, retail, industrial, and multi-residential properties throughout Canada and the U.S. (as of the most recently completed fiscal quarter). Bentall Kennedy is a member of UN PRI and a recognized Responsible Property Investing leader ranked among the top firms around the globe in the Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark (GRESB) for the sixth consecutive year since GRESB was launched. Bentall Kennedy includes Bentall Kennedy (Canada) Limited Partnership, Bentall Kennedy (U.S.) Limited Partnership and the real estate and commercial mortgage investment groups of certain of their affiliates, all of which comprise a team of real estate professionals spanning multiple legal entities. The assets under management shown above include real estate equity and mortgage investments of the companies within Bentall Kennedy, and exclude assets scheduled to transition out of Bentall Kennedy. All amounts cited are in Canadian dollars. For more information, visit www.bentallkennedy.com.

This document is not intended to, and does not, constitute an offer to buy or sell any securities. An offering of securities in Canada or the United States can only be made in accordance with applicable securities laws, including the applicable registration requirements or exemptions therefrom.

About GRESB

The Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark (GRESB) is an industry-driven organization committed to assessing the sustainability performance of real estate portfolios around the globe. The dynamic benchmark is used by institutional investors to engage with their investments with the aim to improve the sustainability performance of their investment portfolio, and the global property sector at large. GRESB rewards actions more than policies as a participant's score for Implementation & Measurement comprises two-thirds of the total GRESB score. www.gresb.com

SOURCE Bentall Kennedy

Jackie Gallant, Head of Institutional Marketing and Communications, (w) 416-204-3894, (m) 416-268-8961, [email protected]