Weekly ESG News: Financial Services and Insurance Industry
Bezos Earth Fund supports protection of the Brazilian Amazon with $50mn grant
The Bezos Earth Fund announced last week that the fund has awarded $50 million in grants to support conservation and sustainable development in the Amazon. The financial grants will support local and international groups working on the establishment and management of protected areas and Indigenous territories. Another focus area will be the early detection and response to forest fires, supporting economic development and jobs based on the forest, and building capacity for carbon markets. Read more here.
Weekly Sustainable Finance Newsletter 26/2023
ESG News of the last week in detail
Products and Service
responsAbility raised USD 106 million for a climate-smart agriculture & food systems strategy
As the global food system is responsible for around one third of greenhouse gas emissions, it plays an important role in the net zero strategy. In order to transform the current food system, significant investments are required. With a total commitment of USD 106 million, responsAbility launched this private debt strategy in collaboration with CGIAR (Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research), KfW (Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau) as anchor investor, and the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) as guarantee provider.
Columbia Threadneedle Investments launched a new social bond fund
Columbia Threadneedle Investments has launched a new social bond fund. The CT Global Social Bond Fund was established with the goal of utilizing the expanding bond market to target social outcomes. The fund joins Columbia Threadneedle’s similar strategies, which concentrate on the UK and Europe and use the company’s current technique to assess the acceptability of bonds through a social rating.
Algebris Investments launched new sustainable bond strategy
With a focus on long-term, reliable performance, the new Fund will invest globally in fixed income securities issued by sustainable businesses in a variety of regions and industries. The goal of the Fund’s sustainable investment strategy is to raise social and environmental standards. Under the EU’s Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR), it is referred to as Article 9. When deciding which securities to buy, the Fund will take a bottom-up approach and use best-in-class ESG criteria. The Fund’s base currency (the Euro) systematically hedges the Fund’s currency risk.
Bezos Earth Fund supports protection of the Brazilian Amazon with $50mn grant
The Bezos Earth Fund announced last week that the fund has awarded $50 million in grants to support conservation and sustainable development in the Amazon. The financial grants will support local and international groups working on the establishment and management of protected areas and Indigenous territories. Another focus area will be the early detection and response to forest fires, supporting economic development and jobs based on the forest, and building capacity for carbon markets. Read more here.
Regulatory and Law
Global Environment Facility (GEF) Council approves plans for global biodiversity fund
The Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, which aims to put nature on a recovery path by the end of this decade, has been accepted by the governing board of the Global Environment Facility amid plans to create a new fund to finance its implementation. The Global Biodiversity Framework Fund will officially debut at the Seventh GEF Assembly in Vancouver, Canada, in August thanks to a decision made by the GEF Council at a meeting in Brazil.
MAS proposes Code of Conduct for providers of ESG ratings and ESG data products
A public consultation on a code of conduct for companies that offer Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) ratings and data products was launched by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) today. This is a component of a suggested strategy that is based on an industry code of conduct that was developed jointly by MAS and industry participants.
ISSB issued global sustainability disclosure standards
A new era of sustainability-related disclosures in financial markets around the world has begun with the International Sustainability Standards Board’s (ISSB) release of its first standards, IFRS S1 and IFRS S2. With the support of the Standards, investor decisions will be better informed by company disclosures about sustainability.
ESG Data and Analytics
Sustainable Fitch launched a new Transition Assessment Tool
With a focus on the energy sector, Sustainable Fitch created a system for positioning, distinguishing, and comparing businesses as they gradually go from carbon-intensive to net-zero operations. This expands on the initial work of the Energy Transition Task Force of the Sustainable Markets Initiative and its Framework for Transitioning Companies report, both of which were unveiled at COP27. Through a variety of performance metrics covering emissions ambition, emissions reduction, and financial efforts to achieve the required transition, Sustainable Fitch will evaluate each company’s transition pathway.
Leadership Announcements
Dana Barsky appointed as Global Head of Sustainability and Net Zero at Standard Chartered
Dana Barsky will drive Standard Chartered sustainability agenda that include overseeing the Group’s delivery of its Net Zero commitments across scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions. Furthermore, accelerating sustainability integration across global businesses and further developing sustainability-related relationships across the public and private sectors will be part of her role.
AXA IM Alts appoints Laurent Lavergne as Global Head of Sustainability
Laurent will be in charge of developing and implementing AXA IM Alts’ sustainability strategy across all of the company’s business lines, including Real Estate, Infrastructure, Alternative Credit, and Natural Capital & Impact Investments, in his new role, which will see him report directly to Isabelle Scemama, Global Head of AXA IM Alts. He will also have voting rights on the investment committee for direct investments (including Natural Capital, Real Estate, and Infrastructure Equity).
Net Zero
AXA announced new decarbonization targets for its portfolios
AXA announced this week new decarbonization targets for its investment portfolios. Overall, AXA will reduce the carbon footprint of its general account assets by 20% between 2019 and 2025. A new target of a 50% reduction between 2019 and 2030 has been set. Furthermore, AXA intends to focus on engagement activities in order to support the transition journey of its portfolio companies. AXA today publishes the 8th edition of its Climate & Biodiversity Report.
IFC invests in ENGIE's decarbonization program in Chile
The International Finance Corporation (IFC) signed a green and sustainability-linked loan to ENGIE Energía Chile S.A.. The financing of a total of US$ 400 million will help the company to shift from fossil fuel-based power generation to renewable power generation. The loan includes US$200 million from IFC, US$114.5 million from investors under IFC’s Managed Co-lending Portfolio Program and US$35.5 million from SDG-focused investor ILX Fund under IFC’s B Loan Program.
Green- and ESG Bond Issuances
Deutsche Post AG issues first Sustainability-Linked Bond
The first sustainability-linked bond issued by Deutsche Post AG, with a nominal volume of €500 million and a term of 2033, was successfully placed. The deal was executed in accordance with the debt issuance program, which was created in 2012. The money will mainly be put to normal corporate uses, such refinancing debt obligations already in place. The bond’s fixed coupon rate is 3.375% annually. The interest rate is linked to the achievement of the group’s CO2 emissions reduction targets.