The headline volume of assets that are managed according to sustainable investment and ESG principles is large and growing rapidly as the growth of client and regulatory interest in the area encourages all asset managers to claim that they are proficient at managing assets in this way.

However, when looked at from the perspective of companies seeking new investors, it can be hard to distinguish between the  different levels of ambition and sustainability motivations among asset managers.

This lack of clarity means that sustainable companies miss out because they find it hard to reach out proactively to sustainability-orientated capital, and sustainable investors miss out because their differentiation is not seen by companies. 

This working paper seeks to list asset managers that are actively allocating capital towards sustainability solutions or substantive sustainability transitions.