Digital library on sustainable finance
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The GIIN’s 2017 Annual Impact Investor Survey is based on an analysis of the activities of 209 of the world’s leading impact investing organizations, which collectively manage nearly USD 114 bn in impact assets, a figure which serves as the best-available “floor” for the size of the impact investing market. This state of the market report presents investors’ perspectives on key issues important to the impact investing industry and also includes new topics such as investors’ commitment to the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
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This is the 6th climate change report from Thomson Reuters and BSD Consulting which identifies the 100 biggest listed GHG emitters and finds that most of them have potential pathways to decarbonisation.
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Global 100 Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Performance, New Pathways for Growth and Leadership - EN
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From 2020, Switzerland is expected to spend between US $ 450 million and US $ 600 million annually on climate change mitigation measures in developing countries. As in the past, funding will come from both public and mobilized private sources. On 10 May 2017, the Federal Council approved a report in compliance with a postulate issued by the foreign policy commission of the National Council.
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Internationale Klimafinanzierung: Möglicher Beitrag der Schweiz ab 2020 - DE
Internationale Klimafinanzierung: Möglicher Beitrag der Schweiz ab 2020 - FR
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A key aspect of the governance process inside organizations and markets is the measurement and disclosure of important metrics and information. This paper examines the effect of sustainability disclosure regulations on firms’ disclosure practices and valuations. Specifically, it explores implications of regulations mandating the disclosure of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) information in China, Denmark, Malaysia, and South Africa. The results suggest that even in the absence of a regulation that mandates the adoption of assurance or specific guidelines, firms seek the qualitative properties of comparability and credibility. It is further shown that increases in sustainability disclosure driven by the regulation are associated with increases in firm valuations, as reflected in Tobin’s Q. Collectively, the evidence suggest that current efforts to increase transparency around organizations’ impact on society are effective at improving disclosure quantity and quality as well as corporate value.
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The Consequences of Mandatory Corporate Sustainability Reporting - EN
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This publication by the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs in collaboration with the Global Compact Network Switzerland aims to support enterprises with the implementation of the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises. The guidance contains helpful information on the implementation of CSR principles and uses case studies to illustrate how the principles are applied in practice. The guidance also includes a self-test that allows you to evaluate the individual strengths and risks at your enterprise as they relate to CSR.
The English version of the publication was updated in 2018.
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This report written by State Street Global Advisors is a global survey of 475 institutions, which found that 68% of respondents believe that integration of an ESG strategy has significantly improved returns, showing that the adoption of ESG driven investment strategies has a future in institutional portfolios.
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Performing for the Future – ESG's place in investment portfolios. Today and tomorrow - EN
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The PRI and the UN Global Compact issued this report as a call on CEOs to ensure their corporate pension plans adopt responsible investing policies and to highlight concrete benefits including improved investment performance, fulfilling fiduciary duty and managing regulatory risk and boosting corporate sponsor credibility.
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Aligning Values: Why corporate pension plans should mirror their sponsors - EN
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This report from the Investor Group on Climate Change (Australia/New Zealand) and the Asia Investor Group on Climate Change (AIGCC) is thought to be the first institutional investor-specific guidance released in the wake of the TCFD draft.
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Transparency in Transition: A Guide to Investor Disclosure on Climate Change - EN
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In der Finanzindustrie zeichnen sich neue Spielregeln ab. Neben finanzieller Rendite gewinnen nicht-ökonomische Motive an Bedeutung: Anleger fordern nachhaltige Investments, Banken positionieren sich als sozial und umweltbewusst und Kapitalmarktakteure müssen die Verteilung von gesellschaftlichem Risiko und privatem Gewinn als fair legitimieren.
Dieser transdisziplinäre Sammelband vereinigt Forschungsresultate, kritische Reflexionen und Denkanstösse führender Expertinnen und Experten aus den Bereichen Investment, Bankmanagement, Finanzethik und Moraltheologie aus der Schweiz, Deutschland, Österreich, Kanada und den USA.
Das Buch kann hier bestellt werden.
Zürich Pano Verlag, [2017]
ISBN: 978-3-290-22037-2
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Ethik_von_Banken_und_Finanzen_INHALTSVERZEICHNIS_de (pdf 127.7 kB)Summary
Novethic's latest study, produced with the support of ADEME, analyses the European green funds market’s trends. The research centre reviewed a selection of 165 funds, that are available in 16 countries and hold assets of € 22 bn.
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The biannual Global Sustainable Investment Review draws on in-depth regional and national reports from GSIA members—Eurosif, Responsible Investment Association Australasia, RIA Canada and US SIF—as well as data and insights from the PRI, JSIF (Japan), LatinSIF and the African Investing for Impact Barometer. Together, these resources provide data points, insights, analysis and examples of the shape of sustainable investing worldwide.
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The OECD's paper “Responsible Business Conduct for Institutional Investors” explains the application of the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises in the context of institutional investors.
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Responsible Business Conduct for Institutional Investors - EN
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The urgency of estimating the impact of climate risks on the financial system is increasingly recognized among scholars and practitioners. By adopting a network approach to financial dependencies, this paper looks at how climate policy risk might propagate through the financial system. We develop a network-based climate stress-test methodology and apply it to large Euro Area banks in a ‘green’ and a ‘brown’ scenario. The authors find that direct and indirect exposures to climate-policy-relevant sectors represent a large portion of investors’ equity portfolios, especially for investment and pension funds. These results suggest that climate policy timing matters.
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This report presents 10 persuasive arguments highlighting why sustainable investments present a valuable opportunity which Swiss banks have so far failed to exploit effectively. It highlights the opportunity created for Swiss private banking by the combination of Swiss strengths and clients’ growing demand for investments with a positive social and environmental impact. The report also contains concrete tools to support advisors in fully preparing for their client discussions on sustainable investing.
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This short publication contains concrete tools to support advisors in fully preparing for their client discussions on sustainable investing. It highlights the opportunity created for Swiss private banking by the combination of Swiss strengths and clients’ growing demand for investments with a positive social and environmental impact.
The publication is part of the report "Sustainable investing: A unique opportunity for Swiss Private Wealth Management - Ten arguments and practical tools for client advisors" available in English.
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Corporate short-termism has been the subject of ongoing debate among leaders in business, government, and academia for more than 30 years, with much of the discussion focusing on whether it destroys value. This discussion document aims to provide a fact base for this ongoing debate through a systematic measurement of long- and short-termism at the company level. The findings show that companies classified as “long term” outperform their shorter-term peers on a range of key economic and financial metrics.
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This edition of the FOEN magazine highlights the role that the finance sector can and should play to support sustainability and environmental goals.
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In the annual report the Federal Department of Finance takes stock of the progress made by Switzerland regarding international financial and tax matters. The report also states that sustainability in the area of finance is becoming ever more important, both worldwide and for the Swiss financial centre.
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Report on international financial and tax matters 2017 - DE
Report on international financial and tax matters 2017 - FR
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The UNEP FI's Principles for Positive Impact Finance are a set of high-level guidelines, designed to "provide a common yet flexible framework for the business and finance community to identify and develop positive impact activities, entities and projects".
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The Principles for Positive Impact Finance - A Common Framework to Finance the SDGs - EN
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The Global Risks Report 2017 is a survey of 750 thought leaders on global trends and economic risks, which identifies environmental-related risks such as climate change as key challenges in the next years.
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The Thun Group of Banks' new Discussion Paper aims to gain further understanding of how the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights should be applied in the banking sector.
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The Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN) invited individuals from business, science, society and the public sector to participate in a ‘Green Economy Dialogue Impulse Group’. Among others, the Group identifies an innovative financial sector as necessary to support investments in sustainable products and services and dedicated project partnerships between business and science.
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GO FOR IMPACT - Shaping the future of the Swiss Economy - DE
GO FOR IMPACT - Shaping the future of the Swiss Economy - FR
GO FOR IMPACT - Shaping the future of the Swiss Economy - IT
GO FOR IMPACT - Shaping the future of the Swiss Economy - EN
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This is GIIN's first industry-level trends analysis of the global impact investor market. The report shows the strong growth in the market (18% CAGR from 2013 to 2015), the satisfaction felt by impact investors in financial and social returns, and points out some success factors and barriers facing the industry.
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Impact Investing Trends - Evidence of a growing industry - EN
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This 10-year review of the landscape of microfinance offshore investments is based on data collected through annual CGAP/Symbiotics surveys of MIVs conducted between 2007 and 2016.
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The Schroders Global Investor Study has gathered the views of 20,000 investors in 28 countries – each with the equivalent of at least € 10,000 invested. 1,836 financial advisers also took part in the survey. The survey revealed that ESG investing is gaining momentum: In addition to the 22% of advisers who think ESG is already an important element in fund recommendations, 62% of advisers expect ESG to become increasingly important within five years. Among investors, ESG issues were more important to “millennials” – investors of the future - than to older generations.
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Schroders Global Investment Study 2016: What investors think about responsible investing - EN
