Asset managers’ sustainability disclosures: words vs. actions

Against a backdrop of investors still struggling with a lack of consistent and reliable sustainability information - making it difficult for them to make appropriate and informed investment decisions - our latest briefing explores the key findings of our recent review of BW rated asset managers' sustainability disclosures.

A recent survey highlighted that:

• 40% of investors said a lack of robust ESG data was holding back their integration of ESG; and
• more than a quarter ranked ‘difficulties accessing the information as I need’ as the leading challenge they faced in implementing ESG

Sustainability concerns are expected to become more prevalent in investment planning in the immediate future. This is not only because of increasing legislation but also as the impacts of these themes, such as climate change and biodiversity loss, become more apparent in our day-to-day lives. Therefore, improvements to ESG reporting are vital for effective investment decision-making.

Our review looks at four areas:

• Comparing data across different assets classes and timescales
• The voting tug of war between ESG concerns and stakeholder resolutions
• The divide between net-zero targets and actions
• Alignment of Stewardship consideration