Ahren Lester

Articles by Ahren Lester

  • Private equity firm EQT enters €5bn ESG-linked loan facility

    11 June 2020

    Private equity firm EQT has entered into an environmental, social and governance (ESG)-linked, fund-level bridge facility of up to €5 billion ($5.7 billion) with a syndicate of more than 15 lenders, including BNP Paribas and SEB.

  • Norges Bank and Unicef launch clothing supply chain child rights guidance

    10 June 2020

    Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM) and children's charity Unicef have launched guidance for apparel and footwear firms on how to better integrate child rights in their global supply chains.

  • Sustainability-linked Bond Principles mark new era for bond market

    09 June 2020

    A set of Sustainability-linked Bond Principles (SLBP) was launched today, in a landmark move that is expected to kickstart a new market of labelled bond issuance that will "complement rather than act as an alternative" to the green bond market.

  • UK will 'wait to decide' whether to adopt EU Taxonomy after Brexit

    08 June 2020

    The UK government is to reserve judgment on whether it will adopt the EU Taxonomy for sustainable activities after it finalises its departure from the bloc, due to the lack of "clarity" currently surrounding the guidelines.

  • Fossil fuel reserve profits 'could fall by two-thirds'

    08 June 2020

    Falling demand and rising investment risk is forecast to slash profits from fossil fuel reserves, research by Carbon Tracker reported, estimating they could collapse by almost two-thirds.

  • Green energy investment resilient despite economic shock

    08 June 2020

    Investment in green technologies is holding up better than its fossil fuel rivals, reports Ahren Lester, despite the unprecedented economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic slashing 2020 forecasts

  • £30bn pension fund hails 'successful' year of ESG progress

    05 June 2020

    Brunel Pension Partnership has lauded its progress on environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues in its inaugural responsible investment and stewardship outcomes report.

  • HSBC launches 'next generation' sustainable equity ETFs

    05 June 2020

    HSBC Global Asset Management (HSBC GAM) has launched three sustainable equity exchange-traded funds (ETFs) targeting firms with strong environmental, social and governance (ESG) scores that are transitioning to a low-carbon economy.

  • Significant variance in Asian company ESG data disclosure

    04 June 2020

    Public disclosure of key environmental, social and governance (ESG) metrics among Asian firms varies significantly by country of origin, a database launched by HSBC has revealed.

  • Better private sector ESG performance boosts national economic growth

    03 June 2020

    The improvement in environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices by private sector firms positively impacts national growth in both developed and emerging economies, an academic paper reported.