One can’t help but wonder why oil giant Shell decided to part ways with some of its beloved hydrocarbon assets, such as its oil wells in the Permian Basin. How have European politicians -from both the left and the right, who otherwise do not look eye to eye on most issues-acted against climate change? Why did Goldman Sachs cut funding for greenfield coal projects, despite having made billions of dollars from the very same sector over the years? Why are latecomer US-based funds in a rush to complete ESG integration and launch ESG-labeled or impact funds?
There is no doubt that an incredible transformation is taking place in governments, corporations, and financial institutions across the globe in response to some of the world’s most chronic problems, including climate change, social injustice, and gender inequality. What is the force behind this transformation? The answer, simply, is people. The change is triggered by the people -consumers, voters, and savers- who are demanding healthier and more eco-friendly products, as well as environmentally conscious policies, and their hard-earned savings contributing to a better future.
It is important to remind ourselves that, we, the people, form the backbone of capitalism. Despite its flaws, capitalism works because it must evolve to address people’s wishes, preferences and demands to survive. As people’s preferences evolve, especially in the developed world, law makers, regulators, corporations, and institutional investors need to catch up.
Ultimately, people dictate what corporations sell, and how they sell it, through their consumption preferences. As savers and wealth accumulators, people can also influence corporate decisions by demanding that financial institutions incorporate ESG factors into their investment and lending practices.
ESG assets are expected to grow and make up a third of total assets under management by 2025, according to Bloomberg Intelligence (1). This expectation is largely predicated on shifts in investor preferences and supportive government policies, as well as the outperformance of many ESG-labeled funds during the pandemic. The growth of ESG assets is likely to pick up added impetus once millennials, who on average tend to be more mindful of ESG investing (2), control a larger portion of wealth.
No Longer Just ‘’Feel Good’’ Investing
While market participants continue to debate how much alpha generation can be achieved by ESG investing, most agree that when done properly, ESG integration improves risk-adjusted returns, as it helps mitigate several risk factors including environmental, reputational and litigation risks.
Moreover, ESG-linked and impact funds, where investment decisions are centered around a specific objective, can help investors contribute towards a solution without sacrificing financial returns. After all, it only makes sense that those trying to tackle the world’s foremost challenges, such as health (SDG 3), climate change (SDG 13) and hunger (SDG 2), through innovation, are more likely to thrive and deliver lucrative returns.
Challenges Ahead
While shifts in investment trends are exciting, execution has been far from perfect. The consensus among institutional investors is that while ESG data and ratings are helpful, they tend to be inconsistent. Moreover, absence of standardization in ESG/sustainability reporting makes it difficult to measure impact. As an example, a white paper published by Professor Witold Henisz of ESG Analytics at the Wharton School claims that different ESG ratings are consistent at pointing out worst ESG performers, though ‘‘correlations outside the bottom decile are worryingly low’’ (3).
Moreover, greenwashing remains a huge problem that applies to both corporates and asset managers. It is common to come across fancy presentations and long sustainability reports that lack meaningful content or actionable, measurable targets. Most asset managers do their homework and encourage corporates to help improve content and avoid investing in those who do not. That said, while disappointing, it is also not surprising to see some asset managers cutting corners, as revealed by recent allegations against DWS, one of World’s leading asset managers (4).
Engagement Can Pick Up the Slack
Even though there are serious hurdles ahead, I am optimistic that they can be overcome with time and effort. ESG data sets, ratings and reporting standards will undoubtedly improve, as the sector and regulators push for reporting standardization and firms apply new methods, including Artificial Intelligence (AI). Until then, many asset managers will rely more on proprietary tools and active engagement with investee companies.
Large asset managers are already hiring ESG analysts to support investment teams, and expanding their stewardship teams. The world’s largest asset manager Blackrock, for example, expanded its stewardship team from 16 people in 2009 to 45 in 2020 (5). Engagement will remain a crucial instrument of change for investors, as in the recent proxy battle at Exxon, where Engine 1 -a tiny impact fund backed by several large funds- managed to secure multiple seats at the oil giant’s board.
Engagement may be even more vital for passive funds including index funds, which have fewer tools in their arsenal. Value-oriented strategies, which have underperformed growth and ESG-linked strategies, may also benefit from ESG integration. For example, EM Value investor Pzena Investment Management argues that while investing in companies with top ESG scores may not always generate alpha, improving ESG scores may do so (6). Engagement would be a crucial tool to instigate such improvement.
Implications for Emerging and Frontier Market Corporates
Growth in ESG and impact investing presents an opportunity for corporates in both developed and emerging markets, as it encourages both corporates and investors to shift their focus away from quarterly results to medium-to-long term targets and performance. This is a win-win for all, given that short term focus can have dire consequences for corporates and investors, as illustrated by the Volkswagen emissions scandal and Boeing 737 MAX tragedies.
ESG investing also presents a challenge for both investors and corporates in emerging and frontier markets, however, due to insufficient awareness, issues with availability of ESG data, and lack of consistency in reporting, which tends to be more problematic compared to developed markets. This is unfortunate because emerging and frontier economies require investment and funding to tackle issues such as climate change, health care and pollution.
This is exactly why significant responsibilities rest on the shoulders of emerging and frontier market corporates and their investor relations teams. Corporate governance practices, collection of ESG data, and disclosures need to go beyond mandatory requirements. Upper management and IR teams need to be ready and equipped with the necessary tools and budgets when meeting investors.
Despite lagging their developed market peers for the time being, more emerging market investors -both active and passive- will incorporate ESG factors into their decision making and actively engage in the companies they invest in. It is not just IR teams that would benefit from this, but also senior management and boards. We at Galifo Partners strongly believe that institutional investors are not just a source of funding but also a reservoir of knowledge.
Hulusi Zarplı
October 21, 2021
(3)https://engine1.com/files/Engine_No._1_Total_Value_Framework.pdf
(6) https://www.pzena.com/the-utility-of-esg-scores-in-the-investment-process