Barclays Adds ESG Assessment and Indicators to Fundamental Research

Fundamental Environmental, Social, Governance (“ESG”) Research will offer clients multi-dimensional analysis of ESG performance for companies under coverage, and assess how ESG attributes impact security pricing.

Barclays Research is enhancing its franchise with the launch of ESG Fundamental Research, leveraging the existing fundamental expertise of our analysts as well as external data sources to highlight the environmental, social and governance impact of companies under coverage by Barclays’ analysts.

“Prior to the outbreak of Covid-19, finance was already at a tipping point, where the integration of sustainability concerns was becoming the norm,” explains Jeff Meli, Global Head of Research. “Today’s launch of Barclays’ Fundamental ESG Research is an opportunity to reflect on whether Covid-19 will accelerate this trend even further – creating a greater sense of urgency and responsibility toward everything from consumer behavior to climate change, supply-chain practices and the future of work and mobility – and potentially alter the nature of the investment process as a result.”

Barclays’ new Fundamental ESG Research will offer clients a multi-dimensional analysis of where the companies Barclays covers sit on the spectrum of ESG performance, leveraging the existing research expertise of fundamental analysts to assess how ESG attributes affect financial risks and valuations. On a sector by sector basis, starting this month, Barclays Fundamental ESG Research will launch fundamental research reports that incorporate the new ESG assessment and indicators for each company under coverage.

Barclays Research will:

• generate a set of indicators (a five-point scale for environmental, social and governance) derived from aggregated indicators of leading ESG providers
• seek to deepen understanding of a company’s ESG credentials by identifying divergence in views between Barclays analysts and that of leading ESG indicator providers
• evaluate perceived ESG risk, and assess the impact of ESG considerations on security pricing
• produce stand-alone reports on key topics and themes that apply this new ESG framework to industries as diverse as Oil & Gas, Pharmaceuticals, Airlines and Autos, all of which are likely to experience fundamental shifts as Covid-19 unfolds

The new offering will complement the two existing pillars of Barclays ESG Research: our Sustainable & Thematic team whose reports track how consumer and regulatory attitudes to ESG are changing operating environments, and our Quantitative Portfolio Strategy team who have produced groundbreaking reports on how ESG factors impact asset performance.

Notes to Editors

Barclays has long been a pioneer in sustainable banking. In 2012, Barclays Research launched the Impact Series which explores the social impact of economic, demographic and disruptive changes affecting markets, sectors and society at large. In 2016, Barclays and Unreasonable Group co-founded Unreasonable Impact, an accelerator program aimed at supporting growth-stage entrepreneurs whose ventures have the potential to employ thousands of people worldwide while solving some of the world’s most pressing social and environmental challenges. And, in 2019, Barclays announced a new Sustainable and Impact Banking team; and hosted its second annual Green Frontiers event, bringing together investors and financiers to discuss the growing challenge of climate change. Barclays also launched the Social Innovation Facility that incubates financial products and services that will have a sustained social or environmental impact.

About Barclays

Barclays is a British universal bank. We are diversified by business, by different types of customer and client, and geography. Our businesses include consumer banking and payments operations around the world, as well as a top-tier, full service, global corporate and investment bank, all of which are supported by our service company which provides technology, operations and functional services across the Group. Barclays offers investment banking products and services in the US through Barclays Capital Inc. For further information about Barclays, please visit our website home.barclays.

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