Finance
Finance for Biodiversity updates nature target-setting framework for investors
The Finance for Biodiversity (FfB) Foundation has launched an updated version of its nature target-setting framework for asset managers and asset owners.
Developed with FfB members, the guidance follows a beta version released in November, and seeks to help investors align financial flows with the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework to halt and reverse biodiversity loss by 2030.
The Finance for Biodiversity Pledge was launched in 2020 and boasts 177 signatories, including Amundi, Fidelity International, Legal & General Investment Management and Federated Hermes. Signatories commit to collaborate, engage, set targets and report on biodiversity before 2025.
In 2021, the FfB Foundation was set up to “support a call to action and collaboration between financial institutions via working groups as a connecting body for contributing signatories and partner organisations”.
Financial institutions that have signed the pledge can become members of the foundation if they want to be active in the working groups. There are currently 76 members.
Among the updates to Wednesday’s document surround the types of nature targets for investors to set.
Target reshuffle
The beta version outlined four types of targets: initiation, sector, engagement and portfolio coverage.
The latest guidance proposes three types: initiation targets, optional monitoring targets and portfolio targets.
The initiation targets would still see investors committing to assessing and disclosing their exposure to nature-related impacts, dependencies, risks and opportunities in line with the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures recommendations.
It also recommends setting targets on governance. For example, an investor could commit to ensuring board or executive-level oversight of the management of nature-related factors by a certain year.
Turning to the optional monitoring targets, these are designed to ensure investors monitor sector-relevant KPIs “across priority sectors and implement stewardship actions to address the identified key impact drivers on nature”.
An example of a monitoring target would be the percentage of companies with a deforestation and conversion-free policy, while a stewardship action could see the investor determine the engagement universe of companies to target on nature.
Finally, for the portfolio targets the Foundation suggests a two-pronged approach: setting portfolio sub-targets, as well as stewardship sub-targets.
An example of a sub-portfolio target could be that by 2030 a percentage of firms from relevant sectors will have committed to implement a validated Science-Based Target for Nature.
A stewardship sub-target could see an investor commit to engaging with a certain number of companies per year on each of the relevant pressures on nature.
“The portfolio and stewardship sub-targets are complementary and indissociable as the latter is the lever through which the investor will influence companies to reduce their pressures on nature thereby achieving the required reduction to meet KPI thresholds,” according to the document.
Unified approach
Another key change since the beta version is the removal of beginner and advanced tracks, which had different timelines for achieving targets.
Instead, the foundation now advocates for a unified approach to applying these targets over time.
“This adjustment ensures that all targets are set to be achieved by 2030, in alignment with the GBF’s mission to halt and reverse biodiversity loss. However, investors retain the flexibility to target shorter timeframes according to their specific goals,” it said.
Currently the framework remains limited to listed equity and corporate bonds – additional asset classes, including sovereign debt, will be integrated into the guidance in future iterations.
The foundation said it is also planning to create guidance on how to set positive impact targets.
ENCORE update
In related news, the ENCORE nature tool has had a major update.
Launched in 2018 to help financial institutions and companies understand how their activities rely on nature, ENCORE is a collaboration between Global Canopy, the UNEP Finance Initiative, and the UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC).
Previous updates included in 2019 when its functionality was extended to enable institutions to also assess their impacts on nature.
One of the latest expansions is growing its previous list of 92 “production processes” to 271 “economic activities”.
These economic activities, ranging from livestock farming to the manufacture of chemicals and nuclear power production, “offer a more detailed breakdown on economic sectors”.
It has also added information on key value chain links, covering two tiers of suppliers and two tiers of consumers for each economic activity, “enabling users to see their indirect nature-related impacts and dependencies”.
“The release of an enhanced ENCORE methodological structure and knowledge base is more than just a procedural update,” said Neville Ash, director of UNEP-WCMC.
“The improvements come in response to pioneering users’ appetite to better understand how nature underpins their operations, and we encourage the business and financial community to use the tool to drive their decision-making towards a sustainable future – for economies, consumers and the planet.”
Written by Jitendra Parashar at The Motley Fool Canada
Dividend investing can be one of the simplest ways to build long-term wealth while creating a steady stream of passive income. But in my opinion, a good dividend stock is about much more than just a high yield. Beyond dividend yield, investors should also look for companies with durable businesses, reliable cash flows, and a history of rewarding shareholders consistently over time.
That’s exactly why many investors turn to financial stocks. Banks and asset managers often generate recurring earnings through lending, investing, and wealth management activities, allowing them to support stable dividend payments even during uncertain market conditions.
Two Canadian financial stocks that stand out right now are AGF Management (TSX:AGF.B) and Toronto-Dominion Bank (TSX:TD). Both companies offer attractive dividends backed by solid financial performance and long-term growth strategies. In this article, I’ll explain why these two financial stocks could be worth considering for income-focused investors right now.
AGF Management stock continues to reward shareholders
AGF Management is a Toronto-based asset manager with businesses across investments, private markets, and wealth management. Through these divisions, the company offers equity, fixed income, alternative, and multi-asset investment strategies to retail, institutional, and private wealth clients.
Following a 59% rally over the last 12 months, AGF stock currently trades at $16.67 per share with a market cap of roughly $1.1 billion. At current levels, the stock offers a quarterly dividend yield of 3.3%.
One reason behind AGF’s strong recent performance is its increasingly diversified business model. The company has expanded its investment capabilities and broadened its geographic reach, helping it perform well across varying market environments.
In the first quarter of its fiscal 2026 (ended in February), AGF posted free cash flow of $36 million, up 14% year over year (YoY), driven mainly by higher management, advisory, and administration fees. These fees climbed to $92.5 million as demand for the company’s investment offerings strengthened.
AGF has also been focusing on expanding its alternative investment business and introducing new investment products. With strong cash generation and growing demand for alternative investments, AGF Management looks well-positioned to continue rewarding investors over the long term.
TD Bank stock remains a dependable dividend giant
Toronto-Dominion Bank, or TD Bank, is one of North America’s largest banks, serving millions of customers through its Canadian banking, U.S. retail banking, wealth management and insurance, and wholesale banking operations.
Finance
Martha Aguirre, former El Paso ISD interim superintendent, resigns as CFO as district finds ‘key financial challenges’
El Paso Independent School District Chief Financial Officer Martha Aguirre, who served as interim superintendent last year, resigned this week as the district said it had discovered “key financial challenges.”
The district issued a news release late Thursday afternoon that lacked details but indicated that a recent review had raised questions about the district’s fund balances, a key indicator of financial health.
“Through this process, key financial challenges were identified that must be addressed prior to closing out the 2025-26 school year including a current budget shortfall that is being actively addressed ahead of the district’s final financial presentation to the Board of Trustees in June,” the news release said.
A CFO is charged with developing a school district’s budget and overseeing its finance department. The EPISD Board of Trustees must adopt a budget for the 2026-27 school year by the end of the fiscal year June 30. The operating budget for the current school year is $547 million.
EPISD Deputy Superintendent David Bates will oversee the budget while the district searches for an interim and permanent CFO, district officials said in a statement.
EPISD Board President Leah Hanany said trustees were notified about Aguirre’s resignation this week. She said the district plans to give the public more information on the current year’s budget during a board meeting later this month.
“The board was also notified of a potential budget shortfall for the 2025 budget, but we don’t have final numbers yet. My understanding is that we are still primed to pass a balanced budget for fiscal year 2026-27 in June,” Hanany said in a statement.
Aguirre could not be reached for comment. EPISD’s CFO makes $148,200 to $209,900 a year, according to the district’s administrative pay plan.
She served as EPISD’s interim superintendent from June to December 2025 after the district’s former superintendent, Diana Sayavedra, resigned under pressure from the board. She returned to her position as CFO when Brian Lusk was hired as EPISD’s new permanent superintendent.
Aguirre’s resignation comes amid an uncertain budget season after a state funding calculation error tied to school property tax breaks caused EPISD to lose out on $17 million in projected revenue. In late April, EPISD officials estimated it would cause the district’s spending to exceed its revenue next year by $10 million.
The district is also considering calling for a bond election in November to upgrade its aging campuses as part of the larger 2024 Destination District Redesign initiative to close schools and improve the ones that remain open.
El Paso Teachers’ Association President Norma De La Rosa said Aguirre’s departure was unexpected.
“We’re right in the middle of the committee meetings for a possible bond and getting ready to get that budget to the June board meeting for next school year. So, to say that I’m highly surprised is an understatement,” De La Rosa told El Paso Matters.
Aguirre started working with the district in 1996 as a general clerk, according to a video published by the district.
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