Regulation and investors’ demands push fund managers towards ESG July 20, 2021 Regulatory imperatives and investor demand are driving an increased focus on environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) principles, according to a PwC report published today. The study found that three-quarters of the fund managers questioned – holding £15.5 trillion in assets – are being influenced by investors and policymakers to drive sustainability outcomes. Regulation 76 [...]
Zurich UK switches $1bn into new ESG benchmark to cut its carbon emissions July 20, 2021 Zurich UK has switched almost $1bn (£73m) of its investment portfolio into a new ESG benchmark in a bid to reduce its carbon emissions. The insurance giant said, in an announcement today, the new benchmark will deliver a 30 per cent reduction in emissions as well as “enhanced” ESG outcomes, compared to its parent index. [...]
FCA warns fund managers to improve their “poor-quality” ESG applications July 20, 2021 The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has told fund managers that their “poor-quality” ESG fund applications must improve. The UK watchdog said it has received “numerous” applications with a sustainability focus that were “poorly drafted” and fell below its expectations. “They often contain claims that do not bear scrutiny,” the FCA wrote in a letter to [...]
Bottom-up ESG: New platform wants to give retail investor army voting power for £1 July 9, 2021 Tulipshare is targeting the next generation of shareholders by tapping into their booming interest in retail investment and demand for a corporate ESG overhaul. The new UK-based activist investment platform wants to enable individuals to “vote with their money” for change from the inside at Amazon, Coca-Cola and Apple by investing as little as £1. [...]
Business leaders double down on hitting ESG targets July 8, 2021 British business leaders are strongly committing to hitting their ESG targets, new research published today shows. Figures compiled by Accenture, the global professional services firms, show 88 per cent of UK business leaders would not go back on their environmental, social and government commitments to meet earnings targets. Read more: Sunak reveals new climate impact [...]
Impact investing is increasingly a buzzword in the City as millennial investors take over June 24, 2021 Impact investing, the strategy to make financial profits but create a long-standing, positive impact on our world, in the process, is becoming increasingly ‘a thing’ in the City and other financial hubs around the world. Many investors are hyper-aware of what is happening around them, with factors such as corporate social responsibility (CSR) making a [...]
Exclusive: Businesses call on govt to set global standards on environmental impacts June 1, 2021 Businesses are calling on the government to set clear global standards for recording their impact on the environment. A host of CEOs from across the business world, including James Timpson and Schroders’ Peter Harrison, have said that making it cheaper and easier for firms to record their environmental impact would make it easier not just [...]
Fee-earning opportunities from sustainability: Is your firm leaving cash on the table? May 27, 2021 | City Talk The ever-evolving topic of sustainability can create ways to grow your business and further serve your clients. Sustainability comprises the many elements of environmental, social and governance (ESG) topics, that are evolving over time; vary across company, industry and country; and involve such a huge range of different stakeholders, concepts, frameworks and rules. Parking semantics [...]
Over half of financial services professionals claim ‘greenwashing’ is rife in the industry, study says May 25, 2021 More than half of financial services professionals believe ‘greenwashing’ is rife within the industry, according to a study released today, as employees fear competitors intentionally inflate their sustainable practices. The study by data agency iResearch Services, which polled 550 decision-makers at financial institutions, also found that 38 per cent believe every business is operating ‘unethically’ [...]
Exclusive: UK banks jump on the tech bandwagon to give their operations a green boost May 24, 2021 Almost three quarters of all UK banks are embracing digital technology to make their business operations greener. In fact, two in five banks are using intelligent automation and digitising all paper processes in a bid to be more sustainable, according to new research by Censuswide, and shared with CityAM today. This was followed by [...]