A Spotlight on ESG
Apex Group’s Environmental, Social, and Governance (“ESG”) newsletter aims to shine a spotlight on the examines the latest ESG trends and industry insights around sustainability. Our purpose is to drive positive change for a more sustainable future in our industry, and influence the flow of capital to the right places. ESG factors remain top priority, with pressure from investors, government bodies, employees and clients alike influencing investment rating criteria, regulatory developments, and corporate integrity, we want to reflect on and share the progress and innovations we see in the market to drive further impact across ESG factors.
Key Statistics
Our team has completed ESG evaluations for more than:
- 350 GPs and LPs
- 1,000+ portfolio companies
- 1m+ portfolio employees.
Key Takeaways
- There has been a recent significant increase in the number of managers using Apex Group’s carbon footprint and climate strategy services, particularly in the US. We will assess 100 portfolio companies in Q3 of this year alone.
- The number of clients now assessing all three scopes of emissions, beyond just Scope 1 and 2, in their portfolio companies is also increasing. 100% of Apex Group’s ESG clients (onboarded pre 2022) are expanding the scope of their assessments to cover all three scopes this year.
- 42% of private market assets under management are in funds with an active ESG policy. – Preqin’s ESG in Alternatives 2022 report
Top Industry Insights
A recent report from Preqin entitled “ESG in Alternatives 2022 – The Transparency Tipping Point” showed that ESG is growing as an investment strategy, together with the demand for better ESG transparency and informed change.
As the heat wave continues across the northern hemisphere, leaders are pushing to keep climate change at the top of political, economic and financial agendas. Discussions at the recent World Economic Forum in Davos, turned to how banks could use their financial clout to shift the world towards net zero production and consumption.
Moving towards net zero is a really pressing issue and Apex Group is a signatory of both the United Nation’s Principles of Responsible Investment and a member of the Net Zero Asset Managers initiative. While it’s clearly important for everyone to think about how net zero is financed, it’s so much harder to move from commitment to action. EY experts recently revealed “Four Steps Financial Institutions Can Take on the Path to Net Zero”, which is a handy reference tool.
Apex Group has been leading the way amongst financial services firms by offsetting its entire lifecycle of carbon emissions, but there’s still much more to be done to get everyone in the industry on board. Some firms are starting to provide clearer roadmaps towards achieving net zero but are under increasing scrutiny from stakeholders to tangibly commit to tracking all three Greenhouse Gas emissions scopes. By evaluating how these contribute towards a company’s carbon footprint, firms can devise realistic strategies that can be implemented and measured at a company level. That’s why the Apex ESG Carbon Footprint Assessment was created.
Case study
Apex Group client, Elysian Capital, shared their insights into why enhance ESG reporting and support is a vital part of their strategy. You can view this film here:
