Danish Pensions Firm Forca Selects Gresham Technologies to Realise Client Service Benefits

Forca, a Danish pensions services provider, has selected Gresham Technologies Control solution for holdings, cash, and transaction reconciliations. By automating all data validation, reconciliation, and regulatory reporting, the solution will allow Forca to tackle data control issues and focus on exception management and transaction reconciliation. With the implementation of the solution already underway, the pensions firm expects to realise client service benefits including efficient, logical, and intuitive end-to-end data ingestion to reconciliation.

Qlik Plans Acquisition of Talend

Qlik, a provider of data integration and analytics solutions for the financial services sector, plans to acquire Talend, provider of a unified platform dedicated to data integration, integrity, and governance. The deal would bring together two Thoma Bravo-backed firms to deliver a cloud independent portfolio of solutions designed to help customers address data integration, transformation, and governance challenges in the transition to cloud. The transaction is expected to close during the first half of 2023 following regulatory approvals.

Switzerland Proposes Green Labelling Rules

Switzerland has proposed new rules covering the labelling of sustainable financial products traded in the Alpine nation’s markets. The Swiss Federal Council said it will require issuers of the products to be able to justify the use of descriptive terms such as “green” and “ESG”. Among other requirements, the council proposes that issuers include disclosures on their products’ approach to sustainability and provide third-party verification of their credibility.

Thailand Proposes Green Taxonomy to Boost Sustainable Market

Thailand has published proposals for its own green taxonomy to help develop the Southeast Asian nation’s sustainability markets. The draft pilot, put out for consultation late last week, is largely based on the European Union’s taxonomy and will focus first on drawing up parameters for climate change mitigation measures.

Third of Companies Don’t Include Climate Change in Risk Analyses

Almost a third of companies do not take climate change into consideration when analysing risks to their business. An Institute of Management Accountants (IMA) report found that finance departments were among the least likely to regard ESG risks as material. Corporate climate risks and mitigation strategies are metrics that have become increasingly important to investors.

Quality and Access the Main ESG Data Concerns of US Listed firms: Deloitte

Data quality and completeness top the concerns of US listed companies as they beef up their ESG capabilities following the Securities and Exchange Commission’s announcement this year that it would require sustainability disclosures, a Deloitte survey has found. Quality was cited by 35 per cent of surveyed executives as their chief challenge, while 25 per cent said accessing quality data was their main obstacle.

Planet, Accenture Tie-Up to Offer Supply Chain, Climate Risk Insights

Environment-monitoring satellite imagery firm Planet has teamed with IT giant Accenture to provide industries, including financial services, with AI-powered geospatial data tools. The combination of Planet’s high-frequency imagery data captured by its fleet of about 200 satellites and Accenture’s analytics is hoped to provide clients with deep insights into supply-chain and climate risks.

Fitch ESG Unit Expand Ratings on Covered and Structured Bonds

Sustainable Fitch has begun providing ESG ratings for labelled structured and covered bonds with an issuance value of US$100 billion. The metrics are the latest additions to Fitch Sustainable’s ESG Ratings, Data and Analysis unit, which has been offering data on $500bn of labelled and KPI-linked debt.

FCA Urges Refocus of Diversity Data, Reveals ESG Ratings Code Plan

The UK’s financial overseer has urged firms to review their use of data to improve their diversity and inclusion performance. Sheldon Mills, the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) executive director for consumers and competition said firms are focusing too closely on gender and diversity, rather than socio-economic data. The call follows the FCA’s announcement that it would form a code of conduct for ESG ratings firms.

Rate of Annual Sanctions Growth Nears 15%, According to Refinitiv Report

The Russia-Ukraine war has caused rapid sanctions inflation since March in several autonomous sanctions programs, contributing to a sanctions inflation rate of 14.6% year on year, according to London Stock Exchange Group’s Refinitiv Global Sanctions Index (GSI).

Refinitiv’s annual GSI white paper, the second edition of which was released last week, measures and analyses rising hyperinflation of autonomously issued sanctions programmes. The rapid inflation since March marks what Refinitiv describes as a major shift in the volumes of sanctions autonomously issued by national governments or regional bodies. The once-prevalent consensus-based sanctions mechanisms created under the aegis of the UN are an increasingly minor component of the GSI, representing just 2% of overall sanctions.