Disclosure framework will offer asset owners needed insights that will underpin their stewardship efforts.  A new reporting template is set to offer asset owners increased visibility of their external asset managers voting behaviours.   The Vote Reporting Group (VRG), first established by the Financial Conduct Authority in 2022, has finalised a voluntary and standardised vote reporting template for asset managers…

Investors urged to speak out to avoid “highly politicised and bitter divide” thwarting ten years of hard-fought progress. Divisions within the European Parliament are becoming increasingly clear over the Commission’s (EC) proposed omnibus, with a decision needing to be made on whether to twist to the left or the right. The omnibus, unveiled at the end of last month, looks…

A selection of the major stories impacting ESG investors, in five easy pieces.  Shifting dynamics in North America could offer an opportunity to keep climate on the global political agenda. Green credentials – Mark Carney’s elevation, last Sunday, to the role of Canadian Prime Minister has been largely characterised as a challenge to his southern neighbour, US President Donald Trump,…

Institutional investors need to grasp its E, S and G risks quickly to use and invest in AI effectively, says Lorenzo Saa, Chief Sustainability Officer of Clarity AI. The potential rewards of AI are enormous, but they do not come risk-free. Just as smoke alarms safeguard our homes, the modern economy needs to install early warning systems and guardrails that…

The bloc’s simplification agenda is set to impede companies’ compliance with its sustainability reporting framework, warns Maria Cronin, Partner at Peters & Peters.  On 26 February the European Commission (EC) published detailed legislative proposals on the sustainability omnibus package. These proposals confirmed concerns that the envisaged measures were not limited to simplifying existing and incoming EU corporate sustainability reporting requirements,…

Stephen Whitfield, Head of Competition at Travers Smith, outlines the challenges of balancing sustainability goals with antitrust compliance. In recent years, corporations have increasingly prioritised ESG issues, often prompting them to collaborate in pursuit of sustainability goals. While such collective action can accelerate progress, it can also raise significant challenges under antitrust laws, which are designed to safeguard market competition…

Despite concerns, Richard Howitt, one of the architects of the EU’s non-financial disclosure rules, sees opportunities as the package moves into co-decision. From whichever angle one views things, attempts by the European Commission (EC) to streamline its sustainable finance disclosure rules look like bad news for investors.  The proposal significantly reduces the scope of companies caught by the Corporate Sustainability…

Taxonomy-aligned capital expenditures (capex) from large listed European companies grew 34% in 2023, reaching €250 billion (US$271 billion) by year end, according to a new report from the Platform on Sustainable Finance (PSF). Half of this was directed toward enabling activities, while transitional activities accounted for 11% of the total (double the previous year). According to the report, debt financing…