Fondförvaltare, hållbarhet och sociala normer : En kvalitativ studie om svenska fondförvaltares integrering av hållbarhet och sociala normer

Sammanfattning: Sustainability has for long time been widely discussed, and in addition the opportunities and influence that the financial industry has. The concept sustainability is also a concept without a generally accepted definition. With the vague definition and the financial industry’s responsibilities for climate issues as background, this study aims to investigate how Swedish fund managers choose to implement sustainability issues, also called ESG-factors, and how fund managers are affected by the everchanging social norms that abound in society. With the use of previous research alongside a qualitative study based on interviews with active Swedish fund managers, the following questions are answered: How do Swedish fund managers implement ESG-factors in investment decisions and how are fund managers affected by social norms linked to sustainability in investment decisions.   After analyzing the empirical result, several themes have been identified under which the study’s respondents were placed. The study finds that the most common strategies among Swedish fund managers are a mixture of negative screening and active ownership. Furthermore, the study shows that the impact of social norms has on fund managers varies. The variation can be caused by differences in experience, emotions, and prejudice. The study shows that social norms affect companies' code of conduct and thus affect fund managers indirectly, while some fund managers consider ruling norms to a greater extent and are thus directly affected.