Wealth Management group Goodbody has chosen Sustainalytics to provide its ESG research, ratings and analytics, it has announced.
The Irish financial group, which has offices in London and Dublin, said it is building out its sustainable investing expertise in response to growing client demands, particularly from charities that have expressed an interest in ethically-driven investment strategies.
In a statement, the company explained that, increasingly, clients are expecting investment experts to go further than simply excluding companies from investment portfolios.
“Ethical investing has evolved from simply excluding ‘sin stocks’ from portfolios into the more integrated, impact-focused investment approach we see today,” said Simon Howley, Goodbody’s head of Wealth Management.
“Not-for-profit organisations and charities are now trying to align sustainable investing more closely with their core values, so they can make a difference without sacrificing performance, and we want to help them achieve that.”
European investment groups are in the process of improving their understanding of sustainable investment techniques ahead of the implementation of the EU Directive for Institutions for Occupational Retirement Provision (IORP II), which requires pensions funds to make disclosures on ESG for the first time. In Ireland, the government has already committed to divesting all state money from fossil fuel companies after a landmark vote in July.
Eimear Toomey, Sustainalytics’ director of Client Relations explained that public awareness of ESG considerations is becoming increasingly important.
She said: “Goodbody is playing a leading role in helping to further the field of ESG investing by educating the market and providing responsible investment options to their clients. We are delighted Goodbody chose Sustainalytics to help fulfill their clients’ needs and collaborate with us to advance the field of sustainable investing.”
