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.
Top Story
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.
Get Daily Updates
Subscribe to DailyAlts Today to get Alternative Investment news, insight, and commentary delivered straight to your inbox every day.
More Stories on ESG and Sustainability
FinTech: Uber Eats And Visa Make A Join Effort To Promote Environmentally Friendly Restaurant Packaging
Uber and Visa have announced a new program to support small-and medium-sized businesses in their transition to green and sustainable packaging solutions. The program is also part of a broader effort to support small businesses that use Uber Eats to grow their businesses.
Artificial Intelligence: The Aware AI-powered App Protects Threatened New Zealand Species
Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT), along with other organizations, has funded the development of the SeaSpotter app, which uses AI to identify and report endangered marine species in New Zealand. These include whales, dolphins and seals.
Alternative Investments/ESG: USCF Launches ETF Focused On Battery Metals
USCF announced the launch of the USCF Sustainable Battery Metals Strategy Fund (NYSEARCA: ZSB), an actively managed ETF that seeks to earn its returns from exposure to battery metals, for example metals such as cobalt, copper, iron ore, lithium, nickel, and other metals currently used in battery and electrification infrastructure.
Alternative Investments/ESG: Hypatia Announces New ETF Focusing On Companies Led By Women
Hypatia Capital Management LLC has launched an ETF that invests in women-led, publicly traded companies. The Hypatia Women CEO ETF (NYSE: WCEO) will seek out companies led by a female CEO or Board Chair. Hypatia is an asset management group focused on female CEOs and balanced management teams, with a CEO-level female executive network that includes over 1000 business leaders.
Venture Capital: Energy-As-A-Service Provider Redaptive Raised $200M
Redaptive offers energy-efficiency upgrades as a service to commercial buildings including fully-funded, end-to-end sustainability solutions that save money, build resiliency and meet ESG goals. The company raised about $200 million from the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board. Certain existing investors, including Linse Capital and CBRE, will also be participating in the investment. Redaptive is expecting to announce a second close in early 2023.
Alternative Investments/ESG: DWS Launches Two ESG S&P500 ETFs In Europe
DWS launched in December two new ESG-focused UCITS ETFs based on the S&P500 titled the Xtrackers S&P 500 ESG UCITS ETF and Xtrackers S&P 500 Equal Weight ESG UCITS ETF.
Alternative Investments/ESG: Element Launches ETF Focused On Future Energy Metals
RBB Fund Complex, a turnkey ETF and mutual fund solution that permits an investment adviser to focus on its core competency of asset management, has launched the Element EV, Solar & Battery Materials (Lithium, Nickel, Copper, Cobalt) Futures Strategy ETF (NYSE: CHRG). Element ETFs, LLC is a newly launched investment adviser to CHRG, which seeks to provide actively-managed exposure to the core commodities essential to the production of electric vehicles, battery energy storage systems, and other renewable infrastructure.
Artificial Intelligence: DeepMind Uses Reinforcement Learning (AI) To Boost HVAC Efficiency
Another fact: Space cooling itself accounts for around 10% of global electricity demand. HVAC efficiency gains can therefore make a dent in the efforts needed to control climate change and global warming. These gains can be boosted by employing AI technology and data analysis that can make fine tuning adjustments to the HVAC equipment in real time.
Alternative Investments/ESG: Subversive Launches Decarbonization ETF
Subversive Capital Advisor launched the Subversive Decarbonization ETF (BATS: DKRB), an actively managed thematic focused exchange traded fund offering access to stocks that are involved in decarbonizing the energy sector. That includes investments in nuclear, wind, solar, and more efficient uses of oil and gas. Additionally, it also includes supporting the underlying decarbonization infrastructure, the technology, and tools necessary to decarbonize the global energy supply chain.
Alternative Investments/ESG: Global X ETFs Australia Launches Low Cost Carbon ETF
Australia’s lowest cost carbon ETF made its debut last month courtesy of Global X ETFs Australia, the Australia-based ETF provider that is a member of Mirae Asset Financial Group. The Global X Global Carbon ETF (GCO2) provides exposure to the price of carbon as driven by the world’s biggest and most developed emission trading schemes. (ESG CLARITY)
Alternative Investments/ESG: Franklin Templeton Launches Sustainable Infra ETF
The ClearBridge Sustainable Infrastructure Exchange-Traded Fund launched by Franklin Templeton seeks to invest in income-generating infrastructure assets with strong environmental, social and governance attributes and stable cash flows. The fund may invest in the physical assets necessary for communities and economies to function and grow, including transportation, electricity, energy infrastructure, water, sewage, communications and renewables.
Alternative Investments/ESG: TrueMark And Eagle Global Launch ETF Focused On Renewable Energy Infrastructure
TrueMark Investments and Eagle Global Advisors have launched the TrueShares Eagle Global Renewable Energy Income ETF (NYSEARCA: RNWZ), an actively managed ETF designed to offer investors core renewables exposure and stable income by investing in renewables infrastructure companies.
Alternative Investments/ESG: BlackRock Debuts iShares Global Equity SRI ETF
BlackRock has launched the iShares MSCI ACWI SRI UCITS ETF (SAWI) listed on Euronext and the Deutsche Boerse. It provides exposure to broadly diversified companies, combining developed and emerging markets exposure for added diversification.
Venture Capital: Swedish Electric Self-Driving Truck Start-up Einride Lands $500M
Einride, the Swedish electric self-driving truck start-up, announced a raise of $500 million comprising an equity-based $200 million Series C portion from investors including Northzone, EQT Ventures, Temasek, Swedish pension fund AMF, Polar Structure and Norrsken VC. A debt funding of $300 million was led by Barclays Europe.
Alternative Investments/ESG: DWS Launches Paris-Aligned Emerging Market Equity ETF
DWS has launched the Xtrackers Emerging Markets Net Zero Pathway Paris Aligned UCITS ETF listed on Deutsche Boerse and the London Stock Exchange, with other exchanges to follow. Providing exposure to emerging market equities the ETF aims to achieve 50% lower carbon use amongst its constituents.
Artificial Intelligence: Monarch’s Electric, Driver-Optional, Smart Tractor Now In Commercial Production
Monarch Tractor has rolled out the first production model of the MK-V tractor that combines electrification, automation, and data analysis to help farmers reduce their carbon footprint, improve field safety, streamline farming operations, and boost profitability. The company’s first customer is liquor and wine group Constellation Brands (NYSE: STZ), which has purchased the first six Founder Series MK-V tractors.
Alternative Investments/ESG: ProShares Launches New ETF For Opportunities In Battery Metals
ProShares has launched the ProShares S&P Global Core Battery Metals ETF ION which will invest in companies that supply the raw metals needed to power the batteries used in the rising number of electric vehicles, laptops, smartphones, and energy storage devices. These are typically metals such as lithium, nickel, or cobalt used in the batteries required to power electric vehicles and other devices.
FinTech/ESG: Carbon Management App Cogo Partners With Digital Bank Tandem
Cogo is a carbon management expert that pairs its Carbon Footprint model with live banking data allowing a bank’s customers to track how much carbon is associated with their spending anywhere, anytime. Cogo has announced a partnership with digital challenger bank Tandem to initially feature on the bank’s green living hub, which offers practical advice, information and tools for customers. Cogo will integrate with the Tandem banking app fully in 2023.
Alternative Investments/ESG: HSBC Lists Five Shariah-Compliant ESG Equity ETFs On European Exchanges
Five new ETFs from HSBC aim to provide investors with exposure to ESG-enhanced, Shariah-compliant exposure to stocks. Two of the new ETFs are already listed on the London Stock Exchange, SIX Swiss Exchange, or Euronext Paris.
Venture Capital: Schneider’s SE Ventures Launches EUR 500M Fund II
Menlo Park, California-based SE Ventures, which is the VC arm of Schneider Electric (EPA: SU), announced today a 500-million-euro fund-II to accelerate climate and industrial technology start-ups within the firm’s overall target sectors of electrification, digitization, and decarbonisation.
Alternative Investments/ESG: Investment Advisory Wahed Launches Shariah And US Equity ETP
A new ETP (Exchange Traded Product) launched by Wahed, a registered investment advisor focused on Halal investments, will invest in US stocks that have passed through a screening process to determine their Shariah status. The ETP, named the Wahed FTSE USA Shariah ETF, has listed on the LSE.
Alternative Investments/ESG: Vanguard Unveils ESG Corporate Bond ETFs In Europe
Vanguard, the fund manager with assets of over $8 trillion under management, has launched two ESG-tilted, corporate bond ETFs denominated in EUR and USD respectively, for European investors. The funds are listed on the London Stock Exchange, Deutsche Boerse, Borsa Italiana, SIX Swiss and Euronext Amsterdam bourses.
Alternative Investments/ESG: BlackRock Debuts An Environmentally Focused REIT ETF
iShares, the ETF unit of BlackRock (NYSE: BLK), launched last week the iShares Environmentally Aware Real Estate ETF (NASDAQ: ERET). The ETF will invest in REIT and real estate holding and development companies that have a sustainability focus and are environment-friendly – specifically, companies with an increased exposure to green certification and energy efficiency. According to the Fund, buildings are the source of 37% of global carbon emissions.
Artificial Intelligence: UK Startup Carbon Re Uses AI To Decarbonize The Biggest GHG Emitters
London-based Carbon Re uses AI to cut emissions at the most energy-intensive industries, for example, glass, cement, and steel. Its technology can develop a ‘digital twin’ of an individual plant by analysing the sensor data gathered on a minute-by-minute basis by Distributed Control Systems. In a cement plant, this creates a high-resolution digital model that captures the properties of a given kiln (the thermodynamics, and the physical processes of clinker production). AI agents can therefore learn these processes in a simulation, so to speak, and then act in real time to maximize the plant efficiency.