Friday Funds: Few equity funds found to have more than 10% green revenues

Only 7 percent of the 31,000 equity funds investigated by Clarity AI have more than 10 percent green revenues, as defined in the EU taxonomy. In a whitepaper published on Wednesday the sustainability technology platform analyzed said funds on how they perform against the upcoming Taxonomy requirements and assessed the common traits across funds. Clarity AI’s research also found that funds focused on sectors “that are doing heavy lifting in the green transition”, such as utilities, show a higher exposure and alignment, with 25 percent green revenues.

Private markets firm Golding Capital Partners expects to hold a final close on its debut impact fund “mid-year”, the firm said in a statement last week. The firm will also launch an energy transition fund “in the third quarter”. “We are seeing significantly higher demand for ESG products and impact solutions,” said founder and managing partner Jeremy Golding. 

Microsoft’s Climate Innovation Fund, TotalEnergies Ventures and Energy Impact Partners are among the investors in a decarbonisation technology venture capital firm that has raised $70 million. Powerhouse Ventures’ second fund “invests in digital solutions driving decarbonisation in energy, utilities, mobility, financial services, and tech”, the firm’s founder Emily Kirsch said on LinkedIn. 

Japan Bank for International Cooperation, a development finance institution, committed €100 million to a clean hydrogen infrastructure fund managed by Hy24 Partners. The fund is targeting €1.5 billion to develop upstream projects to produce clean hydrogen, as well as downstream projects such as captive fleet and refuelling stations, according to a statement.

Pension Insurance Corporation has made a £83 million investment to fund the construction of 161 homes in the London Borough of Newham. The injection by the insurer of defined benefit pension schemes will ensure the regeneration of a brownfield, industrial site near London City Airport to permanently re-home local families, with up to 50 percent of the properties intended to be affordable housing. 

Impact investor Elbow Beach Capital has developed a venture vehicle with an initial £20 million of committed capital, focused on investing in early-stage decarbonisation, sustainable energy, and social impact opportunities. 

BNP Paribas Asset Management has launched two thematic index funds on the Euronext Paris and the Deutsche Börse Xetra. The BNPParibas Easy ECPI Global ESG Med Tech replicates the ECPI Global ESG Medical Tech Index, which selects the 50 most active global stocks in medical technology; whilst the BNP Paribas Easy ECPI Global ESG Hydrogen Economy replicates the ECPI Global ESG Hydrogen Economy index designed to offer investors exposure to the 40 most active companies in the sustainable green hydrogen economy.