The evidence is compelling: sustainable investing can be a clear win for both investors and for companies. We call this "doing well while doing good".

A recent Deutsche Bank Group report found that:

"100% of the academic studies agree that companies with high ratigns for CSR and ESG factors have a lower cost of capital in terms of debt and equity. In effect, the market recognizes that these companies are lower risk than other companies and rewards them accordingly."  

While there has long been a debate between those who regard environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors as being business risks which have a material impact on investment performance and those who regard them as immaterial to the corporate bottom line, many analysts and academics now argue that using ESG strategies is consistent with and may even be essential for carrying out their fiduciary responsibilities.  

On this page we share studies on the issue from Bank of America Merrill Lynch, MSCI, Deutsche Bank Group and the UN Environment Programme Finance Initative.