ESG ratings remain a “messy, opaque world” as more than three-quarters of asset owners say they are unhappy with ESG index providers.
Research from ESG data provider GaiaLens found just 23% of the largest asset owners in Europe and the US said they were happy with the ESG index providers they were using at the start of 2022.
“It is clear from the level of dissatisfaction with ESG index providers and the wide disparity of ESG reporting frameworks being put to work, that ESG ratings remain a messy, opaque world that is riddled with data quantity and quality gaps,” said Gordon Tveito-Duncan, co-founder of GaiaLens.
The study Preparing for Full ESG Integration surveyed 100 asset owners in western Europe and 100 in the US, together representing assets under management in excess of $50.7trn and also found 28% said providers’ methodologies were unclear and not robust, with 19.5% saying there was a lack of variety.
In addition, nearly one in six (14%) said none of the providers focus on the areas of ESG that most concern them.
