Economy
Firm launches research tool for sustainable investment
A London-based business has developed a research tool to help asset managers check the sustainability and behaviour of companies in which they may be investing.
FusionExperience has created the Sustainable Investment Research Portal, an instrument designed to help the industry monitor the environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance of a number of firms.
“Asset managers with sustainable investment portfolios are demanding, and need to be absolutely certain that they are only making investments with reputable organisations”, said Tim Rudlin, product manager for Enterprise Value Management (EVM) for Asset Managers, the platform that the sustainable investment tool is included in.
“Sustainable mandate checking requires detailed analysis of investments and personal lobbying of company directors, along with active participation in shareholder voting.”
The Sustainable Investment Research Portal allows managers to collect information about companies, including their ESG policies, and report any infringements.
Steve Edkins, CEO, added, “This new development demonstrates our commitment to going beyond CRM [customer relationship management], connecting people across the whole enterprise and into the client base so that clients can effectively monitor investment policies.
“By reporting on sustainable investment intelligence, we are able to help our clients and add real value to the services they provide.”
Of course, FusionExperience is not the first firm to provide investors with the necessary information to assess a company’s ESG policies.
EIRIS conducts thorough research into ESG for responsible investors, asset managers, pension funds, charities, companies and advisers, and has been at the forefront of the industry for three decades.
Meanwhile, there is also the Sustainable Investment Research Institute (SIRIS) in Australia, which researches companies’ sustainability performance, with a focus primarily on the Asian market.
Further reading:
$13.6tn invested sustainably worldwide, says study
The growth, drivers and choice behind ethical investment
Online course launched to promote sustainable investment advice
Two US polls contradict independent research on sustainable investment