BlackRock Inc. filed an initial registration statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to launch the BlackRock Liquid Environmentally Aware Fund, or LEAF.
The fund will invest in money market instruments whose issuer or guarantor has better-than-average performance in environmental practices. It will not invest in companies that earn significant revenues from mining, fossil fuels, or thermal coal- or nuclear energy-based power generation.
The fund will use 5% of net revenue from its management fee to purchase and retire carbon offsets.
BlackRock also entered into an agreement with the World Wildlife Fund, a nonprofit focused on wildlife conservation and endangered species. The asset manager will make an annual payment to boost the WWF's global conservation efforts.