ESG

Red flags

At what point
does a potential
investor become 
a reputational risk?

FCA and PRA propose D&I reporting measures

The consultation papers aim to introduce frameworks to measure D&I objectives

Impact Bridge appoints financial risk, compliance and ESG officer

Florencia López André joins from investment banking firm atl Capital

ERM and Greenomy join forces

The sustainability consultancy aims to incorporate Greenomy’s ESG reporting services

EU to sharpen ban on greenwashing

Predominantly aimed at consumers, some rules of new directive could target funds’ marketing communications

In conversation: The real cost of ESG

With a spate of new rules hitting the industry, alongside increasing LP demands, how much does it actually cost to be ESG compliant and how can these efforts be more than just a cost centre?

Investment Association calls for EU reforms

Trade body highlights sustainability, new technologies and greater alignment on regulatory issues as areas of concern

Amicorp launches ESG reporting and rating service

The new service includes audited ESG reports, analysis, business planning and policy implementation

DIY in the wild wild East

Across Lebanon and Palestine, enterprising GPs are piloting their industry with no legislative framework or operational ecosystem, as Matthias Plötz investigates

Arup and Re:Co launch digital sustainability services

Partnership aims to link sustainability outcomes with value creation and support decision making

European Commission opens SFDR consultation

Regulator aims to address shortcomings of legal certainty, usability and potential to counter greenwashing

Ambienta formalises science-based targets

The firm aims to measure its internal percentage of emission reduction and percentage of invested capital with validated targets

GPs find brand perception key reason for ESG reporting

A survey conducted by Oliver Wyman and Novata highlights challenges for measuring ESG financial impact

Tikehau invests in Anthesis

Tikehau shares ownership of the ESG consultancy with Carlyle, Palatine and Anthesis employee shareholders

Data constraints the biggest ESG integration hurdle

Some 71% of respondents to the BNP Paribas ESG Global Survey 2023 find lack of ESG data quality a major barrier to making more sustainable investments

Govern up

Shaking off reputation by association can be tough in emerging markets

EFAMA calls for more transparency in ESG ratings framework

The organisation says the European Commission must bring ESG data providers within the regulatory perimeter

MSCI expands partnership with Google

Companies to provide generative AI offering for portfolio and risk management, including climate risk

Clarity AI and SimCorp team up on sustainability

Partnership aims to allow clients to report on UN’s sustainable development goals through customised scores based on intended sustainability outcomes

BuildESG updates BuildRI software

In an expansion of functionality, lenders to gain visibility into GPs’ responsible investment and ESG processes

Petra Funds joins forces with Novata

Partnership aims to support with collection, analysis and reporting of ESG data

Stafford appoints head of sustainability

Marta Jankovic joins from APG Asset Management where she advised on EU sustainability regulation

Searching for harmony

The Riverside Company's Dörte Höppner assesses the competing ESG standards impacting PE and how they could be more in tune with each other

Sounds of the summit… Carry a torch for ESG?

Many GPs have talked about linking carried interest to ESG metrics but are any of them actually doing it?

Comment: Avoiding the tripwires

Pinsent Masons partner Mark Shaw details how to avoid regulatory issues when distributing non-EU funds within the EU

The Drawdown Awards winners: Graeme Ardus

Graeme Ardus, head of ESG at Triton Partners, was named ESG Professional of the Year at The Drawdown Awards 2023

Profile: Markus Gyssler, EMERAM Capital Partners

The managing partner and COO reflects on 10 years at the firm, walks through its succession programme and explains how he combines operational with investment duties

EFRAG to develop sustainability reporting standards

Association to establish voluntary sustainability reporting standards for SMEs outside of the CSRD’s scope

Invest Europe opens up ESG reporting guidelines

Previously for members only, the guidelines constitute a bid to harmonise and consolidate ESG reporting standards

‘GPs are becoming more creative’

Following his move from Travers Smith to Dechert, we caught up with fund formation veteran Sam Kay to get his take on the current market

Quality control

CDP’s latest report analyses how a unified global regulatory approach can foster better ESG ratings and data products

Iceberg Data Lab launches Barbatus

The tool uses generative AI to produce ESG data analysis

The Drawdown Awards winners: Debojit Mukherjee

Debojit Mukherjee of Agilitas Private Equity was named Chief Operating Officer of the Year at The Drawdown Awards 2023

Worldfavor partners with Northpeak

The collaboration will combine Worldfavor’s sustainability data platform with Northpeak’s ESG consultancy services

Unpacking the EU Commission’s sustainable finance package

Concerns about complexity remain as bloc aligns legislation on sustainable investments and looks to regulate ESG ratings providers

ESMA launches CSA

ESMA and NCAs aim to assess SFDR compliance of supervised asset managers

Comment: Baby don’t harm me

Patricia Volhard (partner) and John Young (international counsel) at Debevoise & Plimpton say the concept of ‘do no significant harm' in the SFDR is becoming clearer

Raising the (global) standard

What impact are the ISSB’s disclosure standards expected to have on global sustainability reporting requirements?

Comment: Preparing for regulatory changes in 2023

Ros Clark, regulatory risk assistant director, NatWest Trustee & Depositary Services details the upcoming regulatory changes financial services firms need to prepare for in 2023.

Profile: Martin Sjölund, Summa Equity

The partner and general counsel walks us through the beginnings of the firm’s legal function and its current management

FAP converts debt fund from Article 6 to Article 9

Germany-based fund manager has successfully converted its real estate fund from Article 6 to Article 9.

Profile: Eva Lamalfa Gil, GED Capital

The firm's head of ESG and communication shares how her dual role is effective in generating meaningful KPIs and supporting portfolio companies

European Commission updates sustainable finance framework

The Commission has proposed the requirement to regulate ESG ratings providers under ESMA

Novata expands ESG benchmarking offering

The service will encompass 50 universal and more than 200 sector-specific benchmarks

Increase in designated ESG managers at PE firms

Survey found nearly 69% of firms to have a dedicated ESG professional

PRI signatory status found to have little to no effect on returns

Report findings were derived from IRR and TVPI dispersion between non-signatory and PRI signatory funds

The value cultivators

CFOs are becoming more involved in the value creation process. We ask these greenfingered professionals how they support their portfolio companies

The Drawdown Awards 2023: Winners announced

Congratulations to all of the winners of The Drawdown Awards 2023

ESMA provides update on greenwashing

ESMA has published one of the three ESA reports on mitigating greenwashing risks, highlighting key concerns and preventative measures

IQ-EQ partners with Novata

The partnership aims to incorporate Novata’s ESG data solution into IQ-EQ’s existing services

Eiffel Investment partners with Carbon4 Finance

Partnership creates methodology to evaluate climate performance of unlisted companies

Answering the right questions

GPs and LPs agree qualitative ESG reporting is a crucial competitive advantage but disagree on reporting requirements, says PwC

Travers Smith appoints co-heads of ESG and impact

Doug Bryden and Heather Gagen will lead the ESG and impact group, chaired by Simon Witney

Comment: Does SFDR encourage greenwashing?

Pinsent Masons financial services partner Mark Shaw asks the awkward question

SFDR comPAIrisons

Clarity AI analysed differences in performance and strategies of 27,000 Article 6, 8 and 9 funds

IIGCC publishes PE net-zero guidance

The industry-specific guidance aims to support GPs and LPs to achieve Paris-aligned net-zero objectives

AssetMetrix partners with Proof

Partnership sees launch of ESG tool focused on compliance with SFDR

More than half of GPs anticipate increase in tech budget

New survey findings reveal that 51% of emerging GPs expect larger IT spends during the coming year

Profile: Mark Pleaner, Lightrock

The chief compliance officer believes a dedicated compliance function is a vital catalyst across operations, deal-doing and culture

In the name of science: how to set your emissions targets

Questions are arising about the various methodologies used to create net-zero targets