ESG and Sustainability
The rise of ESG factors in investment decision making will have a dramatic impact on returns and opportunities in the 21st century. A recent survey by LGT Capital Partners and Mercer showed that 57% of respondents believe that incorporating ESG standards into investment decisions will raise returns. Just 9% argued they reduce returns on investment.
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Revaia, Europe’s largest female-founded venture capital firm, has successfully raised €150 million ($160 million) for its second fund, Revaia Growth II. The funding was secured from sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and institutional investors across Europe, with support from existing partners like Bpifrance and new backers such as mutual insurer Carac and the European Investment Fund.
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More Stories on ESG and Sustainability
Alternative Investments/ESG: BNY Mellon Launches Gender Equality-Focused ETF
BNY Mellon Investment Management is introducing the BNY Mellon Women’s Opportunities ETF (NASDAQ: BKWO) and the BNY Mellon Innovators ETF. The Women’s Opportunities ETF focuses on investing in companies that promote gender equality in the workplace or offer products and services that support women’s work and personal responsibilities. It is sub-advised by Newton Investment Management North America.
Venture Capital: AMP Robotics Raises Series C Funding From Microsoft’s Climate Innovation Fund
Microsoft’s (NASDAQ: MSFT) Climate Innovation Fund has invested in AMP Robotics Corp. (AMP), a company that applies AI, robotics, and infrastructure to the waste and recycling industry. The latest investment is part of AMP’s Series C round and brings the total funding to over $99 million.
Artificial Intelligence: ‘Godfather Of AI’ Warns Of Existential Risk From AI, Bigger Than Climate Change
Geoffrey Hinton, an AI pioneer, has said that artificial intelligence poses a more pressing threat to humanity than climate change. He was speaking to Reuters in an interview. “I wouldn’t like to devalue climate change. I wouldn’t like to say, ‘You shouldn’t worry about climate change.’ That’s a huge risk too,” he said to Reuters. “But I think this might end up being more urgent.”
Venture Capital: Enterprise Energy-as-a-Service Provider Redaptive Lands $50M
Redaptive, a provider of Energy-as-a-Service solutions, has received an additional investment from Linse Capital in its series E funding round. This funding is a significant milestone in the expansion of Redaptive’s offerings to support more customers.
Venture Capital: Germany’s HV Capital Closes Ninth Fund At Record €710M ($782M)
HV Capital, a German VC fund, has successfully raised €710 million for its newest investment fund, HV Capital Fund IX, which will allow them to continue investing in high-growth companies across various sectors. The new fund will be divided into two vehicles, Fund IX Venture and Fund IX Growth, with investment sizes ranging from €500,000 to €60 million.
Alternative Investments/ESG: DWS Launches Xtrackers Nordic Net Zero Pathway Paris Aligned UCITS ETF
DWS has launched a new Xtrackers ETF that focuses on equities in the Nordic region, which is part of its suite of Paris-aligned climate ETFs in Europe.
Venture Capital: Ohmium, Maker Of Green Hydrogen Electrolyzers, Lands $250M Series C
Ohmium International, a green hydrogen company that manufactures proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyzer systems, has raised $250 million in a series C growth equity financing round led by TPG Rise Climate. Other participants include Hanover Technology Investment Management, Energy Transition Ventures, and Fenice Investment Group.
Alternative Investments/ESG: Mackenzie Lists Sustainable Investment-Focused ETF
Mackenzie Investments has returned to the NEO Exchange with the launch of the Mackenzie Corporate Knights Global 100 Index ETF, which will trade under the symbol MCKG. The ETF aims to replicate the performance of the Corporate Knights Global 100 Index and contains equity securities of issuers from across the globe.
Venture Capital: Hydrosat Raises $20M For Satellite Monitoring Of The Earth
Hydrosat, a geospatial data analytics company, has raised $20 million in government grants and investments for its climate change campaign. Statkraft Ventures led the funding round, which also included Blue Bear Capital, Hartree Partners, Freeflow Ventures, OTB Ventures, Cultivation Capital, Expon Capital, Techstars, Santa Barbara Venture Partners, and Hemisphere Ventures.
Venture Capital: Venture Capitalist Firms Form UN-Backed “Venture Capital Alliance (VCA)”
The Venture Capital Alliance (VCA) has launched with more than 20 VC firms as members, including Tiger Global and Union Square Ventures, with the goal of encouraging the VC industry to increase commitments to climate tech.
Alternative Investments/ESG: CIRCA5000 To Launch Five Sustainability-Focused UCITS ETFs
CIRCA5000 has announced its plans to launch a range of ETFs that focus on making a positive impact, becoming the first to offer portfolio coverage of the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Alternative Investments/ESG: Invesco Launches ESG-Focused Global Sector ETFs
Global asset management firm Invesco has introduced a series of global sector exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that aim to enhance their environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) profiles, as well as reduce carbon emissions. The four ETFs, named Invesco S&P World Sector ESG UCITS ETFs, will track the performance of the S&P Developed Ex-Korea LargeMidCap ESG Enhanced Sector Indices, created by S&P Dow Jones Indices for sustainable sector investing. The ETFs fall under Article 8 of the EU’s Sustainable Financial Disclosure Regulation, indicating their ESG focus.
Digital Assets: Zero-Carbon Bitcoin Miner TeraWulf Deploys 50MW Nuclear Power At Nautilus Cryptomine
TeraWulf Inc., a Bitcoin mining company, has announced the full deployment of its 50 MW stake in the Nautilus Cryptomine facility ahead of schedule. The Nautilus facility is the first behind-the-meter Bitcoin mining facility in the United States powered by 100% nuclear power, sourced from the 2.5 GW Susquehanna nuclear generation station in Pennsylvania. TeraWulf successfully deployed its 50 MW stake in phase one of the facility,
Alternative Investments/ESG: A New UBS ETF Gives Exposure To Dividend-Paying Swiss Companies With High ESG Scores
UBS Asset Management has launched a new ETF on the SIX Swiss Exchange, providing investors with ESG-enhanced exposure to dividend-paying Swiss stocks.
Alternative Investments/ESG: Japan’s GPIF Invests $3.7B In Huge Plug For Corporate Gender Diversity
Japan’s $1.4 trillion Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF) has allocated $3.7 billion to track the Morningstar Japan ex-REIT Gender Diversity Tilt Index, according to reports. The index aims to promote gender diversity in companies by emphasizing those that have strong policies rooted in their corporate culture and provide equal opportunities to all employees.
Alternative Investments/ESG: Harbor Capital’s New ETF Invests In Smaller Companies With Happy Workers
Harbor Capital Advisors has launched a new ETF named Harbor Corporate Culture Small Cap ETF (HAPS) to provide investors exposure to small-cap companies with strong human capital factor scores. The HAPS ETF measures corporate culture and its connection to future equity performance through proprietary research and employee survey data, and other publicly available grassroots sources such as employee reviews. The underlying thesis is that there is a correlation between contented employees and favorable stock performance of smaller firms.
FinTech: ANZ And Grollo Carbon Ventures Test Trading In Tokenized Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) On The Blockchain
ANZ (ASX: ANZ), one of Australia’s largest banks, has partnered with Grollo Carbon Ventures to successfully trade Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) using digital tokens. ANZ issued its stablecoin, A$DC, to tokenise existing ACCUs, enabling Grollo to purchase them using smart contracts on a public, permissionless blockchain with settlement occurring in near real-time.
Alternative Investments/ESG: DWS Xtrackers Launches $2B Climate Equity ETF Anchored By Finland Insurer
DWS, a leading asset manager, has announced the launch of Xtrackers MSCI USA Climate Action Equity ETF (NYSE: USCA), which aims to provide investors exposure to large and mid-cap companies in the US that are taking the lead in climate positive steps in their industry group.
Alternative Investments/ESG: MKS PAMP Launches ETF Backed By Carbon-Neutral Gold Bars
Swiss gold trading house MKS PAMP has partnered with UBS to launch the world’s first carbon-neutral gold ETF, which is backed by carbon-neutral gold bars sourced from MKS PAMP and certified by the Carbon Trust. The initiative will allow climate risk-oriented clients to invest in certified gold that meets strict environmental criteria and reduce the carbon footprint of their portfolios.
FinTech: Cogo And Eliq Partner To Help Banking Customers Enhance The Energy Efficiency Of Their Homes
Cogo, a fintech which collaborates with banks to assist customers in decreasing their carbon footprint as a carbon footprint management firm, is partnering with Eliq, a company that specializes in making sense of energy data. The partnership aims to provide information and support for banking customers as they deal with the challenges posed by climate change and energy crises.
Venture Capital: Farmers’ Fintech Agreena Raises €46M For Its Soil Carbon Platform
Climate and fintech company Agreena has raised €46 million in its Series B round of funding. Led by Germany’s HV Capital, the round also included new investors such as AENU and Anthemis, as well as existing shareholders such as Gullspång Re:food, Kinnevik, and Denmark’s Export and Investment fund.
Alternative Investments/ESG: Healthcare Of Ontario Pension Plan (HOOPP) Unveils Climate Plan For Achieving Net Zero In Its Portfolio By 2050
The Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan (HOOPP) plans to invest nearly US$17 billion in green investments by 2030 to reduce the carbon footprint of its portfolio, as part of its strategy to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
Alternative Investments/ESG: Sprott Asset Management Debuts ETF Focused On Nickel Miners
Sprott Asset Management has launched the Sprott Nickel Miners ETF (NASDAQ: NIKL), the only US-listed ETF focused on nickel mining companies providing a mineral critical for the clean energy transition.
Alternative Investments/ESG: Fidelity Debuts Climate-Focused, Global Bond ETF In Europe
Fidelity International has launched a new fixed income ETF in Europe, targeting climate-conscious investors. The Fidelity Global Government Bond Climate Aware UCITS ETF is designed to provide exposure to a portfolio of local currency government bonds issued across the world while delivering an immediate reduction in the carbon emissions profile compared to similar market cap-weighted benchmarks.