ESG Tailor Made Research

We support financial players by providing and implementing transparent and bespoke ESG research and related services.

ESG research services that meet individual needs

The sustainable investment market is continuously growing. Some financial players have specific requirements that are not addressed by standardized approaches or are focused on assets typically lacking coverage. Our goal is to provide them bespoke solutions, from the design to the operational deployment of their ESG strategies, covering the entire ESG investment value chain.

ESG solutions covering all asset classes

Whether you are an asset manager or an asset owner, in listed or private assets, our ranges of services will meet your needs:

ESG Due Diligence
Portfolio analysis and reporting (ESG or Environment-specific)
ESG Research
- Customized ratings
- Business activities: controversial or positive products/services
- Norm-based screening (OECD, UNGC, ILO) and controversial business conduct
- Climate-related aspects
- Indicators with relevance for regulatory aspects (e.g. EU Taxonomy, SFDR)
ESG Verification and Assurance:
- Sustainable Funds Review
- Sustainability Assessment
- Certificate of KPIs relevance (SLL, SLB, …)

Client benefits

Focus beyond your ESG requirements

From defining frameworks to supporting their implementation, our ESG services cover the entire investment cycle. Whether you need to define your methodology, assess specific asset classes or projects, or produce regulatory reports, our comprehensive support will fulfil your ESG requirements, enabling you to focus on your core business.

Benefit from our technical solutions

We are not only a team of analysts. We combine human expertise with advanced technical solutions to offer unparalleled service. Our platform enables efficient data collection and verification, while our internal models allow to estimate carbon emissions, temperature trajectory, biodiversity, and Taxonomy metrics. Through our partnership with SESAMm, we utilize NLP technology and a vast data lake to monitor your portfolios’ ESG controversies. This integrated approach offers you a turnkey solution for comprehensive and effective ESG support.

Partner with a trusted ESG pioneer

With a combined track record of over 50 years in ESG research, we offer our expertise and regional market knowledge to our clients. Our team of 20+ multilanguage speaking analysts based both in France and Germany deliver fast and cost-effective commissioned ESG research services tailored to your needs, backed by industry standards.

Use Cases

Focus on development policy

Evaluation of the investment universe according to defined ESG criteria

Client Need

With the FairWorldFonds, Bread for the World is initiating the first mutual fund that takes development policy criteria into account alongside social and ecological criteria. The fund’s investments and thus the selection of securities are based on the principles of justice, peace, integrity of creation and the SDGs. It arose from the idea that ethical principles should also apply to capital markets and that the common good orientation of the globalized economy should also be taken into account when investing. The underlying list of criteria was formulated by the partners Bread for the World and Südwind – Institute for Economy and Ecumenism. Against this background, Union Investment launched the FairWorldFonds in cooperation with GLS Bank and Bank für Kirche und Diakonie eG – KD-Bank.

EthiFinance Actions

EthiFinance derives an ESG methodology and a multi-stage analysis for a reliable selection of securities from the specifications of Bread for the World and Südwind to ensure that the issuers included in the fund meet the criteria catalog. This ensures that companies, development banks and countries are regularly and reliably evaluated and that only suitable securities are selected for the fund.

Project Result

Since the beginning of the fund, EthiFinance has provided ESG data in the form of ratings, reports and controversy monitoring, thus supporting the criteria committee and fund management in the selection of securities. “To implement the criteria catalog, we have a critical sustainability rating agency in EthiFinance, which can also implement demanding criteria in a sound rating methodology and practice.” Dr. Klaus Seitz, Head of the Policy Department at Bread for the World Are you also a fund manager and would like support in selecting securities according to individual ESG criteria? Or are you an NGO and want to use the financial market as an additional lever to achieve your goals? We would be happy to advise you!

Provision of ESG and SDG due diligence checks, portfolio analyses and preparation of supplementary ratings.

Client Need

CSR Beratungsgesellschaft mbH aims to invest sustainably as a value-oriented company. Since the company was founded, clear ESG factors have been integrated into risk management and the investment process in order to play a leading role in the market. The investments should meet ethical, social and ecological exclusion and positive criteria. In addition, the CSR Bond Focus SDG Fund aims to make a positive contribution to the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations (SDGs).

EthiFinance Actions

EthiFinance has been supporting the sustainability process of the CSR funds since 2017. This includes the continuous development of the sustainability approach. In order to systematically ensure compliance with sustainability principles in the investment funds managed by CSR Beratungsgesellschaft, CSR Beratungsgesellschaft works together with imug rating GmbH. The most important adverse impacts of investment decisions on sustainability factors are identified using the data provided by imug rating and evaluations by CSR Beratungsgesellschaft. The ability to consider the most important adverse sustainability impacts depends largely on the availability of corresponding information on the market. The required data is not available to a sufficient extent and in the required quality for all assets in which CSR Beratungsgesellschaft invests via the funds and mandates it manages. To this end, imug rating provides customized commissioned ratings.

Project Result

EthiFinance reviews the investable and invested universe for CSR Beratungsgesellschaft in accordance with the client-specific sustainability filter and provides the due diligence results and company-related ESG information on a quarterly basis. In addition, we provide commissioned ratings for companies that are often not included in the research by ESG data providers in order to prove the conformity of smaller investment securities with the sustainable investment strategy of CSR Beratungsgesellschaft. In addition to the due diligence checks and order ratings, we prepare annual sustainability portfolio analyses. The portfolio analysis, which is tailored to the strategy of the CSR funds, provides a systematic overview of the sustainability performance of the funds. The company-related ESG information also include carbon footprint data and climate transformation assessments also as commissioned ratings.

Are you also a fund company and would like support in selecting securities according to individual ESG criteria? Do you need ESG ratings for individual companies in addition to the securities shown in the standard coverages? Or would you like to use a portfolio or climate analysis to assess the ESG or climate performance of your investments? We would be happy to advise you!

Monitor ESG risks and opportunities in private credit funds

Challenges:

Introduce a controversy analysis (norm-based screening) in both pre-investment phase and on a regular monitoring basis.
Assess and monitor the ESG performance of private credit funds over time.

Solution

MV Credit partnered with EthiFinance to further enhance its ESG risk management using the OneTrack solution. During pre-investment phases, the OneTrack team analyzes companies’ exposure to controversies and their alignment with international standards (UN Global Compact, OECD Guidelines, ILO). The overall portfolio’s exposure to ESG controversies is then regularly updated to ensure thorough monitoring of companies’ risk profiles. Additionally, annual ESG assessments are conducted for each portfolio company, and ESG reports are produced at the fund level. This enables MV Credit not only to track ESG progress and engage with portfolio companies but also to report to its stakeholders.