ESG Clarity is delighted to unveil the Responsibility Ratings Index (RRI), a one-stop show overview of the top-rated ESG views in Europe.
More and more research houses and data providers have started to rate responsibly invested funds based on their environmental, social and governance credentials, as well as their performance, volatility, resources and company sustainability agendas.
In partnership with Last Word Research, ESG Clarity has scoured the fund ratings from providers Morningstar, Square Mile Investment Consulting & Research and MSCI to come up with a table of 35 funds that have scored the highest among all three.
The RRI will be rebalanced quarterly to reflect changes to the individual ratings, but also to encompass the growing number of data providers that are beginning to award ESG funds with a score.
Lottie McGurk, quantitative researcher at Last Word Research in charge of the project, said: “Given people’s growing interest in environmental and social issues around the world, it is perhaps unsurprising there has been a similar increase in demand for funds that pay special attention to ESG factors when allocating capital to businesses.
“Making the most of this important trend is not straightforward, however, given there is as yet no universal benchmark for what does and does not constitute an ‘ESG’ fund or strategy. What do exist, though, are a growing number of ratings agencies that provide their own assessment of ESG funds – and the opportunity to take that one step further.
“To that end, ESG Clarity and Last Word Research are excited to unveil the Responsible Ratings Index (RRI), which aims to provide an overview of the entire ESG investment sector – and at the same time identify those funds ranked most highly by different agencies.”
Natalie Kenway, editor of ESG Clarity, added: “The resilience of ESG funds during the recent downturn, and the generational shift in investment portfolios means the demand for funds investing responsibly can only continue to grow. Indeed, I have reported on this being an “investment megatrend” many times in my career.
“We hope the RRI provides another useful tool for fund selectors constructing portfolios by enabling them to see the funds rated the very best from an ESG point of view.”
An example of the RRI is below (Last Word Research is developing a version for ESG Clarity US that we hope to launch soon):
