ESG investing gains ground amid pandemic, better sustainability disclosures

At the end of June 2021, assets invested in Indian sustainable funds identified by Morningstar reached a record Rs 11,970 cr, significantly up from Rs 4,210 cr a year ago

ESG investing in India is likely to gather momentum egged on by the Covid-19 pandemic, global growth of such investments and improved sustainability disclosures in India, with the rollout of Business Responsibility & Sustainability Reporting (BRSR), which is applicable for the top-1,000 companies by market capitalisation effective FY2023.

Sustainable investing assets in five major global markets grew at a CAGR of 7.3 per cent to $35.3 trillion at the start of 2020 outpacing the CAGR of 3.5 per cent for professionally managed assets over the past two years, said a report by Kotak Institutional Equities. US and Europe together continued