The European Fund and Asset Management Association (EFAMA) calls on the European Commission to reflect EFRAG´s recommendations for mandatory European Sustainability Reporting Standards in the upcoming NFRD review.
The asset management industry plays a key role in meeting the objectives of the European Green Deal to make the EU’s economy sustainable. Our members integrate ESG considerations across their risk management processes and investment decisions. They develop sustainable investment products and foster transparency to fight greenwashing. This increases choice, trust and, in turn, retail investors’ participation. Overall, such efforts mobilise capital towards a fair and just transition to a climate-neutral economy by 2050.
EFAMA actively contributes to the development and implementation of EU’s sustainable finance initiatives. Among them are a comprehensive transparency framework for financial market participants, standards and labels for green financial products, classification of green economic activities and policies enhancing corporate sustainability reporting.
The European Fund and Asset Management Association (EFAMA) calls on the European Commission to reflect EFRAG´s recommendations for mandatory European Sustainability Reporting Standards in the upcoming NFRD review.
Investors would benefit from an EU legal framework with due diligence guidelines and reporting requirements for companies in the real economy. This framework should be consistent with the reporting requirements in the revised NFRD and the disclosures in the Sustainability-Related Disclosures regulation (SFDR). At the same time, any framework for supply chain due diligence should not impose a competitive disadvantage for EU companies.
The European investment management industry is helping savers achieve their financial goals and build up retirement savings. Investment management is a vital part of the European economy, providing funding for companies and infrastructure projects and contributing to economic growth and job creation across all Member States.
Today, the European Commission has released their proposal for a regulation on ESG ratings and data providers.
EFAMA has today published its response to the ESMA consultation on guidelines on funds’ names using ESG or sustainability-related terms. EFAMA members have concerns around the proposed numerical threshold approach as it may not address the underlying greenwashing issues our industry is facing due to the current lack of clarity on many key sustainable finance concepts.
In an environment with unclear definitions at EU level on key sustainable finance concepts, as well as a lack of complete, comparable and transparent ESG data, all market actors are concerned about the risk of greenwashing.
"It gives me great pleasure to provide you with an overview of our activities since our Annual General Meeting in Paris last year. While we were very much looking forward to hosting you all in Brussels this week, the current crisis and associated travel restrictions has forced us to improvise and turn our meeting into a virtual AGM.
A well-designed EU Ecolabel has the potential to provide clear guidance on the financial products retail investors can invest in if they wish to support environmentally sustainable projects and activities - in line with the EU Taxonomy Regulation. The European Commission wants to create a trusted and verified label for retail investors, who would benefit from better comparability of financial products.