ESG Remains Top Priority for Investors, Companies

Financial markets are increasingly turning their attention towards Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG), as sustainability efforts become a top priority among regulators, asset owners, investors and companies alike.

For Fitch Ratings, 2020 marked the second year of systematically assessing and tracking the impact of ESG factors on our ratings via our ESG Relevance Scores. We continue to expand our ESG capabilities in order to meet evolving market demands, and will be launching a series of value added ESG products during 2021 and into 2022.

Financial regulators continue to focus on climate change and the potential risk it poses to financial stability, while stakeholder scrutiny of environmental and social issues, throughout value chains, continues to grow. Pressure on corporates and financial institutions to demonstrate how they plan to achieve stated net-zero targets, and support social justice objectives, is intensifying.

In the 2021 update to our ESG in Credit white paper, we outline our approach to evaluating ESG risks in all our rated sectors and highlight key trends and patterns.

New topics featured in the 2021 ESG in Credit white paper include ESG risks for Supranationals, a comparison of relevance scores between corporate developed and emerging markets, and how we assess long-term climate risks via ESG Vulnerability Scores.

We remain committed to furthering our reputation as a trusted provider of data and analysis, and to continuing to deliver insightful, independent and transparent ESG products to the market. Click here to download the white paper.

---

Fitch Ratings are speaking at the Sustainable Investment Forum North America in September during Climate Week NYC. Register now to connect with asset owners and managers, banks, development institutions, policymakers, think tanks and NGOs looking to drive meaningful change in sustainable finance.