Deloitte research: How to drive more cost-efficient access to capital, stronger valuations and earn investor trust with sustainability disclosures – an opportunity for corporate leaders.<\/p>\n
Sustainable investing is the present, not the future.<\/p>\n
Investors are increasingly incorporating sustainability factors into investment decisions:<\/p>\n
\u2b55 83% of surveyed investors incorporate sustainability information into fundamental analyses.<\/p>\n
\u2b55 79% of respondents have sustainability policies in place, compared to 20% five years ago.<\/p>\n
\u2b55 Only 1% state they don\u2019t have any plans to develop sustainable investing policies in the future – these results are consistent globally and across investor types.<\/p>\n
Investors are seeking to minimize risks and capitalize on opportunity, with huge investments in global economic growth projected between 2021 and 2070 if the world economy transforms to achieve net-zero emissions.<\/p>\n
They are looking for clear, consistent, evidence-based sustainability data and use ratings to gain a more comprehensive view of risk.<\/p>\n
Despite growing demand for sustainability data, investors struggle with often inconsistent, unclear, and unreliable information:<\/p>\n
\u274c Unclear corporate sustainability strategies
\n\u274c Incomparable data from ratings agencies
\n\u274c Frequent lack of measurable outcomes from corporate reports<\/p>\n
They believe regulations will ultimately clarify many of the data challenges investors face by bringing consistency and standardization to corporate sustainability disclosures.<\/p>\n
Four actions that can help earn investor trust in corporate sustainability commitments:<\/p>\n
\u27a1 1. STRATEGY & GOVERNANCE: Strengthen sustainable governance capabilities through greater coordination across the C-suite, to reliably execute on sustainability commitments.<\/p>\n
\u27a1 2. SYSTEM SUPPORT: Invest in sustainability measurement, reporting systems, and compliance solutions to enable more robust, higher-quality disclosures.<\/p>\n
\u27a1 3. ASSURANCE: Corroborate sustainability disclosures with third-party assurance. Investors trust assured disclosures as much as their own proprietary data.<\/p>\n
\u27a1 4. ENGAGEMENT: Lead with investor engagement to address issues and foster transparency and accountability.<\/p>\n
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Deloitte and The Fletcher School at Tufts University embarked on a global study, executed between January and December 2023, to understand how companies can enhance investor trust in their sustainability disclosures.<\/p>\n
The research was based on a survey of 1,000+ investors, including asset owners, asset managers, and investment advisers in North America, Europe, and Asia. The quantitative data was supplemented by 10 interviews with sustainability investors.<\/p>\n