Realdania accedes to Tax Code of Conduct
With several of Denmark's major foundations, from 2021 the philanthropic association Realdania will be joining the Tax Code of Conduct with common principles and recommendations for responsible tax behaviour.
The Tax Code of Conduct was adopted jointly in 2019 by ATP, Industriens Pension, Pension Danmark and PFA. The aim is to influence tax behaviour in Denmark and abroad, and the Code of Conduct focuses on unlisted investments through external managers. From the New Year, Leo Fondet, Novo Holdings, the Lundbeck Foundation, Villum Fonden, Velux Fonden and Realdania will accede to the Code of Conduct.
Kenneth Lillelund Winther, CIO at Realdania, is pleased with the collaboration with the founders from the pension sector, and the common ground for a total now of 17 institutional investors:
"The more who join, the greater our clout to influence our cooperation partners. The Tax Code of Conduct is a common framework for good tax behaviour by which, together with the other parties, we clarify what we expect from external capital managers,” said Kenneth Lillelund Winther.
Tax revenues are crucial for a well-functioning society, and tax is a direct source of funding for the UN Sustainable Development Goals. The signatories to the Code of Conduct do not accept aggressive tax planning.
“The Code of Conduct is a natural element in our work on responsible investment and a very relevant contribution to the strategy for our investments, namely to generate the returns that are the foundation for our philanthropic work," said Kenneth Lillelund Winther.
Following the latest expansion, 17 investors have now acceded to the Tax Code of Conduct: 11 pension companies, five foundations and one philanthropic association.
The core of the tax principles is:
- Investors do not accept aggressive tax planning
- Investors call on external managers to adopt their own tax policies
- External managers are to monitor and manage relevant tax risks in a responsible manner
- Investors should be transparent in the tax area
- Investors reserve the right to demand further reporting and to carry out sample checks to verify that external managers are not exercising aggressive tax planning.