ESG issues have come sharply into focus among financial institutions and regulatory bodies. Today, the need to transition to a more sustainable global economy seems more urgent than ever. As governments work to shape the long-term response to COVID-19, we are seeing ever-greater concern with ESG initiatives, such as placing the green economy at the heart of the post-pandemic recovery. Financial institutions are critical in the delivery of the capital necessary for these initiatives. Moreover, given the rapidly changing legal backdrop, in which compliance with the highest standards is key, financial institutions today increasingly understand the importance of ESG compliance.
Our ESG team within the Financial Services sector is positioned at the forefront of these issues, working with our subject matter experts to apply a sector lens and advise our international financial services clients on navigating this rapidly evolving landscape.
Regulation
We are witnessing a dramatic shift in regulation and standards-setting with regard to ESG and financial institutions. Climate change is increasingly understood to be a risk to financial stability and is growing in prominence on the regulatory agenda. Mere "greenwashing" is no longer enough. Prudent financial institutions recognize that climate change needs to be factored in to their risk management and stress testing frameworks. At the same time we are seeing a parallel change in legal systems, as regulators introduce frameworks to help investors determine which economic activities and investments can be deemed environmentally sustainable.
Litigation
With more people working remotely and a marked rise in demand for digital financial services in response to COVID-19, financial institutions have needed to enhance their technology capabilities significantly. At the same time, this greater reliance on the Internet brings with it greater vulnerability to cyberattacks and data breaches. Both represent significant litigation risks for financial institutions – risks which their boards and senior managers have to manage. We regard it as essential for financial institutions to take a proactive approach to mitigating these litigation risks by reviewing their cyber governance structures and risk management frameworks.
Technology and tools
There is growing demand from institutional investors, regulators and ratings agencies for ESG data and reporting. However, this data is often difficult to verify and lacks comparability across firms. There is also an increasing need for methodologically robust and reliable ESG benchmarks which encompass the entire ESG spectrum. We can expect to see further focus – and spend – on technology solutions, such as data benchmarking and modelling, as the demand for consistent, robust ESG reporting intensifies. We are also likely to see further growth in FinTech firms developing artificial intelligence and blockchain solutions which enable asset managers to integrate ESG datasets into portfolio construction and analysis.
Sustainable finance
Sustainable finance and sustainable investments are a core segment of the overall ESG landscape: they are ethically aligned with modern corporate principles and risk management while being economically motivational in terms of value creation. Today we are seeing international initiatives designed to screen and manage responsible corporate financing activity generally, plus an increasing number of businesses implementing substantial internal policy requirements for sustainable finance and investments.
A wide range of sustainable financial products and instruments with positive environmental and/or social impacts is available, such as sustainability-linked bonds, sustainability-linked loans, green loans, social bonds and green bonds.
Sustainability and funds
Increasing numbers of fund managers are committing to ESG principles and we are seeing a marked uptick in flows into sustainable funds. We are also seeing increased prominence of ESG in the fundraising process, with fund managers needing to ensure their funds come from ethical sources. At the same time, fund managers are increasingly expected to demonstrate to institutional investors, such as pension funds, that their money is being invested wisely, ethically and responsibly.
To discuss the implications of these issues for your business, please contact our ESG leaders.
