At a the New York Times conference in late 2018, BlackRock CEO Larry Fink proclaimed that “demand for ESG [environmental, social, and governance] is going to transform all investing.” Less than five-years later, at the 2023 Aspen Ideas Festival, Fink was referring to the “weaponisation of ESG….by the far left and … the far right”. The increased politicisation of the ESG to which…
The announcements that asset manager giants have left the Climate Action 100+ (CA100+) initiative has caused responsible investors to review positions in their funds, while others have said the move is “not surprising” for passive players. On Thursday (16 February), Reuters reported JP Morgan Asset Management (JPMAM) and State Street Global Advisors will not be renewing membership of the investor-led…
Global asset manager AXA Investment Managers (AXA IM) announced today that it has updated its corporate governance & voting policy with more stringent ESG expectations for companies, including a pledge to target high emissions companies lobbying against the goals of the Paris Agreement. According to AXA IM, the new policy comes amidst an intensifying political backlash against climate-related regulation, contrasting…
Hydrogen technology startup Celadyne announced today that it has raised $4.5 million in seed capital, with proceeds supporting the company’s solutions aimed at enabling industrial and transport decarbonization. Founded in 2018 by Gary Ong, Chicago-based Celadyne provides hydrogen solutions to the energy industry, working with fuel cell and utility companies to provide materials and technologies to convert hydrogen into usable…