Arcesium Offers ESG Book Data Through Aquata Platform

American FinTech provider Arcesium is to offer its financial institution clients sustainability data from ESG Book, the Germany-based vendor and asset manager that is supported by a dozen major banks. Analysis, scores and other metrics on 50,000 companies will be provided by ESG Book through Arcesium’s cloud-based platform called Aquata.

Majority of Asset Managers and Owners Follow TCFD Guides: Report

Most asset managers and owners are reporting their climate performance data in line with the disclosure framework that’s thought most likely to be adopted as a global standard.

The latest annual survey by the Taskforce for Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) found that 70 per cent of managers and 84 per cent of asset owners reported climate-related data to their stakeholders last year. Of the former, more than four fifths report in line with at least one of the TCFD’s 11 recommended disclosures, while half of asset owners followed the organisation’s guidelines.

The TCFD disclosures with which most asset managers were aligned were those covering the reporting of climate related metrics as well as risks and opportunities. Asset owners placed greater focus on risk management recommendations.

The materiality of climate-related risks to their business was given as the most common reason why both groups reported such data, while asset owners gave equal weight to regulatory requirements.

The annual report highlighted how TCFD has become the go-to reporting framework for financial institutions, a point underlined by the incorporation of its recommendations into the International Sustainability Standards Board’s (ISSB) own set of disclosure guidelines. The ISSB, which was created in 2021, is widely expected to form the backbone of any globally accepted standard on ESG disclosures.

Survey Finds Substantial Surge in Greenwashing

Greenwashing is on the rise within financial institutions, with a quarter of all ESG risk incidents linked to the scourge, up from a fifth last year, according to a new report.

Sustainability science provider RepRisk found 148 cases of greenwashing in compiling its second annual report, which also found that 70 per cent of incidents were attributable to banks and most of those with regard to human rights breaches.

ESG Pillar 3 Disclosure Tool Launched by ISS ESG

ISS ESG’s European bank clients can now take advantage of a tool designed to help them comply with a key sustainability regulation. The company’s ESG Pillar 3 ESG Solution provides templates and disclosure facilities to meet the European Banking Authority’s sustainability reporting standards. Clients can access the service through is own DataDesk as well as an API, cloud and data feeds.

Most Companies Unprepared for SR Disclosure Assurance

A large majority of companies are unprepared to fully comply with the European Union’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and other imminent sustainability reporting regulations, according to a new survey.

KPMG found that 75 per cent of 750 companies surveyed in its “Road to Readiness: KPMG ESG Assurance Maturity Index 2023” didn’t have the skills, policies or systems to meet the regulations’ disclosures assurance requirements.

The companies that are most ready are the larger firms and those that are already engaged on ESG issues. More than half said it was difficult to balance such demands against profitability expectations of shareholders, the report also found.

SAP Fioneer Launches Fist ESG Tool for FIs

SAP’s FinTech arm SAP Fioneer has unveiled its first ESG assessment tool for investment portfolios. The Fioneer ESG KPI Engine is available for on-prem or cloud-based platforms and enables banks and insurers to manage portfolios according to particular KPIs.

HKEX Plans to Widen Climate Disclosure Rules

Hong Kong’s financial regulator has said it will increase requirements for companies to disclose climate-related data as it seeks to better enable investors to direct capital to ESG-linked assets and companies. Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (HKEX) chair Laura Cha Shih May-lung said the plans would be introduced in pursuit of helping China reach its 2060 net-zero goals.

EU Considers Rewriting Sustainability Categorisations for Financial Products

The European Commission is reviewing parts of its flagship regulation covering financial institutions’ ESG performance reporting. In a consultation questionnaire on the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR) market participants are queried on the way sustainability products are categorised. This follows complains that the designation of products as Article 6, 8 or 9 – indicating increasing degrees of sustainability – is confusing. The consultation also indicates the EC is considering requiring ESG disclosures for all financial products, even those that make no sustainability claims.

CDP Urges G20 to Back Nature Disclosures

Nature-related impact disclosures should be made mandatory for financial institutions and companies, CDP has urged on the eve of a meeting of the world’s 20 richest countries and trading blocs. The disclosure organisation warned the G20 that without such data, greenwashing could remain a challenge and that biodiversity would suffer.

ESG Book Chosen to Support Data Project in Asia

ESG Book will provide data to an Asian-based project to address gaps in the sustainability data record. ESG Book, a open data initiative led by vendor Arabesque and backed by a dozen major banks, will be among providers of information to the Sustainable Finance Institute Asia’s (SFIA) Single Access Point for ESG Data (SAFE) initiative. ASIA is a collaboration between multiple stakeholders in the Asia Pacific region.