In January 2020, S&P Global announced that it has successfully completed the acquisition of the ESG ratings as well as ESG benchmarking units from RobecoSAM. The ESG ratings business includes the well-known Corporate Sustainability Assessment (CSA) from RobecoSAM. This blog post introduces you to S&P and RobecoSAM, describes how they are connected and shares further information.
What is S&P and RobecoSAM?
S&P
- S&P Global is the world’s leading provider of ratings founded by the company Standard & Poor’s
- S&P Global includes credit ratings, issue credit ratings, issuer credit ratings, benchmarks and further analytics in the global capital markets
- These ratings offer deep data and insights on critical business factors including ESG criteria (Environmental, Social & Governance)
RobecoSAM
- Founded in 1995
- Specialized in sustainable investment solutions with integration of ESG aspects
- Enables investors access to investment solutions regarding sustainability topics
- All strategies and products are meant to create a positive impact for environment or society (so-called Impact Investing)
- Established the Corporate Sustainability Assessment (CSA) in 1999 that is an annual evaluation of companies’ sustainability practices
Connection of S&P and RobecoSAM
The Corporate Sustainability Assessment (CSA) from SAM has already become the basis for providing reliable sustainability and ESG data for numerous ESG indices from Standard & Poor’s, including the highly recognized and well-known Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI). With the completed acquisition of ESG ratings the S&P Global expects to include the CSA scores and data in its existing as well as future product offerings.
This means that “the CSA will form the foundation of S&P’s Global’s ESG research across its different divisions S&P Dow Jones Indices, S&P Global Ratings, S&P Market Intelligence […]. The CSA will serve as a central point for defining ESG topics and data across the entire S&P Global organization.” (see spglobal.com, 2020).
The S&P ESG Index Family offers investors exposure to companies according to their ESG profile in the context of country-specific and regional indices. The index family is based on S&P DJI ESG Scores, based on the results of the annual SAM Corporate Sustainability Assessment (CSA). The index family includes broad market indices like the S&P 500 ESG, S&P Europe 350 ESG, S&P Global 1200 ESG, and S&P Japan 500 ESG.
Further Resources
Please find further information and resources regarding the above-mentioned topic here:
- ESG data provided by CSA for S&P Global
- CSA Methodology
- Indices and index families
DFGE’s opinion
DFGE considers the above mentioned acquisition to be positive for the area of sustainability reporting. It is important that a high-impact rating like S&P Global includes sustainability data to provide tailor-made information for investors about sustainability practices of companies and to drive action into a more sustainable future.
DFGE’s help
DFGE is an expert in providing support for sustainability ratings. In cases you need help regarding your next DJSI assessment don’t hesitate to contact us by mail () or by phone: +49 8192 99733-20.
