Scientific Beta

Top 1000 Funds: "Academic research has underlined that ESG scores are not able to guide issuers or investors who are concerned with social welfare and environmental sustainability. In addition, international organisations as diverse as the OECD and the WWF have warned against viewing ESG scores as a meaningful indicator of an investment strategy’s contribution to the achievement of ESG goals, in particular the fight against climate change. We favour ESG screening, which does not seek to manage an average score at the level of the index or portfolio but imposes the same minimum ESG standards on all constituents."

Top 1000 Funds 28/01/2021

Article by Erik Christiansen, ESG investment specialist at Scientific Beta.

"(...) Academic research has underlined that ESG scores are not able to guide issuers or investors who are concerned with social welfare and environmental sustainability. In addition, international organisations as diverse as the OECD and the WWF have warned against viewing ESG scores as a meaningful indicator of an investment strategy’s contribution to the achievement of ESG goals, in particular the fight against climate change. We favour ESG screening, which does not seek to manage an average score at the level of the index or portfolio but imposes the same minimum ESG standards on all constituents. Thus, concerns about portfolio-level financial or ESG performances are not permitted to distract from the removal of securities of issuers whose activities or behaviours violate global ESG norms. (...)"