Manulife Asset Management appoints Emily Chew Global Head of Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance

Ms. Chew previously served as MSCI's head of ESG Research for Asia-Pacific

TORONTO, BOSTON and HONG KONG, Oct. 3, 2016 /CNW/ -- Manulife Asset Management has named Emily Chew as Global Head of Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance (ESG) Research and Integration. The appointment was effective September 2. Ms. Chew is based in Hong Kong and reports to Peter Mennie, Senior Managing Director and Global Head of Investment Risk and Quantitative Analytics.

"In this new role for our firm, Emily will serve as the primary lead on ESG. She will engage with companies in which we are invested to discuss ESG issues, report on conclusions to portfolio managers, and articulate our approach to ESG with clients," said Mr. Mennie. "In addition, she will be responsible for oversight of ESG research globally, setting strategic direction for Manulife Asset Management."

Ms. Chew's appointment follows Manulife Asset Management becoming a signatory to the United Nations-sponsored Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) in 2015, as well as hiring Frederick Isleib as ESG Analyst, North America, who works with portfolio management teams on ESG risk identification in portfolios, and produces thought leadership on ESG trends. Mr. Isleib reports to Ms. Chew.

Most recently, Ms. Chew was Head of ESG Research for Asia-Pacific at MSCI Inc. Her team had oversight into research quality and issue identification for approximately 1,200 stocks, and under her leadership produced original research on the relevance of ESG to Asian and emerging markets.  Prior to that, she was a capital markets lawyer with Baker & McKenzie in Melbourne, Australia, with a focus on funds management, capital raisings, and REITs.

Ms. Chew is a member of PRI's Listed Equities Outreach Subcommittee. She holds an MBA from the University of Oxford, and Bachelor of Laws and Bachelor of Arts from the University of Melbourne.

About Manulife Asset Management

Manulife Asset Management is the global asset management arm of Manulife, providing comprehensive asset management solutions for investors. This investment expertise extends across a broad range of public and private asset classes, as well as asset allocation solutions. As at June 30, 2016, assets under management for Manulife Asset Management were approximately C$435 billion (US$334 billion, GBP£252 billion, EUR€303 billion).

Manulife Asset Management's public markets units have investment expertise across a broad range of asset classes including public equity and fixed income, and asset allocation strategies.  Offices with full investment capabilities are located in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, and the Philippines. In addition, Manulife Asset Management has a joint venture asset management business in China, Manulife TEDA. The public markets units of Manulife Asset Management also provide investment management services to affiliates' retail clients through product offerings of Manulife and John Hancock. John Hancock Asset Management and Declaration Management and Research are units of Manulife Asset Management.

Additional information about Manulife Asset Management may be found at ManulifeAM.com.

About Manulife

Manulife Financial Corporation is a leading international financial services group providing forward-thinking solutions to help people with their big financial decisions. We operate as John Hancock in the United States, and Manulife elsewhere. We provide financial advice, insurance and wealth and asset management solutions for individuals, groups and institutions. At the end of 2015, we had approximately 34,000 employees, 63,000 agents, and thousands of distribution partners, serving 20 million customers. At the end of June 2016, we had $934 billion (US$718 billion) in assets under management and administration, and in the previous 12 months we made more than $25.4 billion in benefits, interest and other payments to our customers. Our principal operations are in Asia, Canada and the United States where we have served customers for more than 100 years. With our global headquarters in Toronto, Canada, we trade as 'MFC' on the Toronto, New York, and the Philippine stock exchanges and under '945' in Hong Kong. Follow Manulife on Twitter @ManulifeNews or visit www.manulife.com or www.johnhancock.com.

SOURCE Manulife Asset Management

Beth McGoldrick, 617 663 4751, [email protected]; Brian Carmichael, 617 663 4748, [email protected], http://www.manulife.com