What Do Individual Investors Really Think About ESG?
We always try to write about environmental, social, and governance (ESG)-related topics in a way that is informative, engaging, and understandable for everyone who may be interested in the subject. Nonetheless, we expect institutional investors, wealth managers, and corporate executives to be more comfortable in this arena than most individual investors. After all, wrapping your
Word Choices about Sustainability and More
This title of a recent article in Reuters caught our eye: “Majority of global asset managers still not investing responsibly, ShareAction says.” The first line of the article goes on to say, “Global asset managers controlling trillions of dollars are failing to invest in a way that will protect climate, biodiversity, and people, despite efforts
Wealth Management & ESG Disclosure Requirements
Early last year, we posted a short article titled, “ESG and Wealth Management – Taking Off Or Stalled?” We think it’s already time to revisit the topic. First, let’s state a key underlying assumption that is not necessarily embraced across the entire wealth management space: incorporating environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors into the investment
Greenwashing, or Just a Misunderstanding?
Here’s something we’ll bet you already know: there has been pushback in certain circles against investing based on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria. While often described as “anti-ESG”, some—not all, but some—of that pushback is not actually an objection to ESG per se. It stems from a suspicion that some asset managers, mutual funds,
ESG and Private Equity – Part 2
ESG is getting more private. No, we don’t mean that ESG topics are becoming secretive, quite the contrary! By “private” we mean “private markets.” Sustainable funds and sustainable investing (not one and the same, but that’s a different topic!) are becoming more common in the private equity (PE) arena. This is notable for a few
Do Investment Funds Need an Ingredients Label?
Imagine going to the grocery store to shop for one person with food allergies, another person on a low-sodium diet, and someone who is pre-diabetic and has to stay away from added sugars. You would rely on the nutrition labels and lists of ingredients on the packaging to know what to buy. Now imagine that
Facts Versus Opinion: The Principles for Responsible Investment
One of our pet peeves is when someone states a derogatory opinion dressed up as a fact, and in doing so misleads others who are then likely to repeat the criticism to colleagues and friends, and then it snowballs. People who know the actual facts may try to dispute the opinion-stated-as-fact, but if the criticism
ESG and Private Equity Investing
According to the American Investment Council’s 2022 Public Pension Study, at the end of FY 2021 U.S. public pension plans held an average of 11% of their assets in private equity (PE), with 89% allocating at least some amount to the asset class. Pensions & Investments reports the average allocation to private equity within college and
ESG in Emerging Markets – Applying a Suitable Lens
Consider the following scenario: two people are striving to win the title of “Best in Category X”. One of them (we’ll call her Joanna, for no reason at all), comes from an upper-middle class family, went to good schools, received training from experts, and never had to worry about things like food, shelter, or being
3 Rewarding Reasons To Consider ESG When Investing
Many retail and institutional investors often have a pressing concern when investing: how does ESG affect financial performance? Environmental and social accountability has increased in the past decade. There’s growing pressure on organizations to refrain from unethical practices. According to the US SIF Foundation’s Report on US Sustainable and Impact Investing Trends, one out of
Steps To Improve Your ESG Performance
Environmental and sustainability accountability is growing rapidly, prompting organizations to adopt comprehensive ESG policies. A KPMG survey shows a 96 percent sustainability reporting rate for G250 companies – the world’s largest 250 companies – in 2020. This number is expected to increase in the coming years. Companies aren’t the only ones incorporating ESG. According to EY,
Screening, Best-In-Class, Best-In-Progress or Integrated?
If you want to bake a cake or fix a plumbing problem, you can easily find a recipe or instruction manual to tell you what to do, step-by-step. When it comes to investment strategies based on environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria, there is no recipe that tells investors and corporations, “add ¼ cup of
