Hanover, 27th March 2024
Die Integration von imug rating in die europäische EthiFinance-Gruppe schreitet voran: Im Bereich Second Party Opinions wird ab April 2024 erstmals eine gemeinsame verbesserte Methodik angewendet. Das Upgrade ist ein wichtiger Schritt, um den wachsenden Anforderungen im europäischen Finanzmarkt gerecht werden und flexibel auf regulatorische Veränderungen reagieren zu können. Zukünftig werden alle Leistungen im Bereich Second Party Opinions unter der neuen Dachmarke von EthiFinance angeboten.
Hanover-based imug rating GmbH has been part of the EthiFinance Group since 15 March 2023. EthiFinance is an independent European rating, research and advisory group for investors, companies and organisations in the sustainable finance market. The Group aims to become the leading European agency for financial and non-financial ratings. EthiFinance has over 160 employees located in Granada, Hanover, Lyon, Madrid and Paris. With the Hanover office, imug rating is the point of contact in the D-A-CH region for sustainability-related ESG advisory, data and reporting as well as for Second Party Opinions, Sustainability Ratings and expert opinions.
In the course of the integration, an intensive exchange took place in the form of pan-Europe working groups with the aim of standardising and improving the slightly different in-house methodological approaches. This process has now been completed for the segment Second Party Opinions. The components of the Second Party Opinion familiar from imug rating have thus been expanded to include two modules: “Assessment of ESG Maturity” and “Evaluation of the Framework With Impact Assessment”, i.e. a supplementary evaluation of the environmental and/or social impact of the financed projects.
Julia Haake, Head of ESG Ratings Agency, explains: “Our methodology draws on the expertise of our ESG analysts and provides an informed assessment of the ESG maturity of the issuer or lender. It provides credible external verification of the quality of the framework against market standards such as the ICMA and LMA principles and market best practices.”
In future, Second Party Opinions will be prepared by European project teams whose expertise covers all relevant economic sectors. Thanks to the pan-Europe set-up, with more personnel resources and expanded expertise in the area of sustainability, Second Party Opinions can be offered not only in the D-A-CH region and in English-speaking countries, but also in Belgium, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain.
Axel Wilhelm, Managing Director at imug rating, says: “With the further European positioning of our Second Party Opinions, we are taking the next step on the way to becoming an SPO provider for issu¬ers of all sizes. Even in a growing and increasingly regulated European ESG investment market, working in partnership with our clients re¬mains our top priority.”
What does this mean for our clients and what added value do we create for you through the improved assessment process? You can find out all this in our FAQ:
