Remote Working

For four weeks now, the majority of our firm has worked from home. Thanks to a fantastic head of IT, and significant investment in video conferencing last year, our work has continued without a blip. Each in our own homes we’re able to use our systems, securely locate files from our drives and speak to each other face to video-face whenever we need to.

Read more

The environmental silver lining

The COVID-19 pandemic is causing enormous disruption to many parts of our lives – our health, our jobs, the economy, and our sense of security. It’s a devastating and global catastrophe. But one small silver lining is that it is creating a truly once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to realise the environmental effect of our usual levels of human activity, and how quickly the natural world rebounds when we’re quarantined at home.

Read more

ESG rating bias and the key role played by internal bottom-up ESG analysis

European Small Cap Equity

We’re regularly baffled by the ESG scores for companies we know are committed to a sustainable future

We are often vocal about the shortcomings of ESG ratings. This frustration is particularly acute for our European Small Cap Equity team who invest in companies that often do not have any coverage from ESG agencies. For those that are rated, the grades rarely reflect what we understand of the company through our bottom-up analysis and regular company interaction. We’re regularly baffled by the ESG scores for companies we know are committed to a sustainable future.

Read more

ESG investments in a bear market

In the incredibly volatility seen this week, we’ve seen some interesting trends and news items in sustainable investment. The pressure in the market is something of a day of reckoning for sustainable investment, as some critics might imagine that ESG credentials take second place when capital preservation becomes the priority. But so far ESG investment is showing itself to be sticky and attracting new investment from long-term investors during this volatile period. It’s a sign that ESG funds are making their way into model portfolios and long-term allocation strategies from advisors.

Read more