Thomson Reuters has acquired the business of ASSET4 AG, a Swiss-based, provider of Environmental, Social Responsibility and Governance (ESG) information and tools for professional investors and corporate executives.
Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
The deal represents a step forward in the integration of ESG data into mainstream financial analysis. This information allows investors to engage companies, improve
investment performance, reduce risk and lower research costs, while
corporate executives can reduce risk, enhance corporate governance and
increase accountability, transparency and trust.
The global credit crisis, climate change, new regulation and other issues have highlighted the need for financial firms to assess the environmental, social responsibility, governance and reputational risks attached to the firms in which they invest.
“Thomson Reuters acquisition of ASSET4’s business is timely as our clients are looking for deeper insight into the combination of financial and extra-financial factors that drive the performance and risk of their investments”, said Abel Clark, global head of strategy and marketing, Investment and Advisory at Thomson Reuters. “The ESG content and tools will bring our clients increased transparency into areas of corporate performance that will grow in relevance as voluntary and mandatory ESG disclosure and performance standards become more prevalent.”
“Thomson Reuters is the natural choice to take the extra-financial information and tools that ASSET4 has built over the last five years to a truly global and mainstream client base,” said Peter Ohnemus, ASSET4 CEO and President. “Thomson Reuters clients will now have the information and tools to make this type of analysis a reality. Our existing clients, like Bank Sarasin, Storebrand and Société Générale, who have been thought leaders in responsible investing, will now be able to seamlessly integrate our ESG information into all aspects of their investment processes.”
Thomson Reuters is a leading source of news and information for businesses and professionals. With headquarters in New York and major operations in London and Eagan, Minnesota, Thomson Reuters employs more than 50,000 people and operates in over 100 countries.
ASSET4 (www.asset4.com) is a leading provider of objective, comparable and auditable extra-financial information. ASSET4 provides professional investors and corporate executives access to ESG information and the analysis tools to integrate that information into their everyday decision making.
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