VERA, a new environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) data platform, has been launched by the credit information and risk management solutions provider Creditinfo in Iceland to guide sustainable investments.
Financial services companies engaging with the centralised platform can expect a standardised overview of their ESG performance.
The insights offered by the platform seek to promote ESG regulation compliance, while also facilitating a way for other organisations to provide sustainability data to the financial sector.
VERA congregates information from a range of sources, including data directly reported by companies as well as external sources such as media coverage, judicial information and supply chain operations.
The standardised information allows financial services organisations to obtain an overview of ESG factors and performance and establish how best to comply with the regulation.
Making its debut in Iceland, with other regions to follow globally, the platform is compatible with non-financial corporations and can be used to conduct supplier assessments to determine the ESG performance of their supply chains.
“Providing ESG information to financial services strengthens the presence and engagement of financial institutions – especially in markets where sustainability data is generally limited,” comments the company’s director of sustainability, Reynir Smári Atlason.
“It’s not only an ethical decision but a practical one – various markets don’t have the regulations in place to hold companies to account,” he continues, “yet ESG data is needed if they’re going to attract investment through sustainable financing.”
The VERA platform comes on the heels of Creditinfo’s own sustainability policy as the next step in its overall ESG strategy.
The company’s aim to facilitate better decision-making in financial services and enable greater access to finance for underserved SMEs, companies and individuals without credit ratings means it plays a vital role in social sustainability globally, and transparency in its environmental and social dealings across its regions must be a fundamental part of this.
The company is expected to publish its inaugural sustainability report evaluating performance areas against its sustainability policy in 2023.
“Our ESG data platform and sustainability policy are just the first steps in understanding and addressing our wider external impact and helping others to do the same,” adds the company’s CEO Paul Randall.
“Not only do we need to make sure we comply with regulations in this area, but the responsibility also lies with individual companies to be proactive when it comes to innovating in a sustainable and responsible way.
“We’re ready to lead by example here and I’m very excited by our ESG data platform and sustainability policy to ensure Creditinfo and other financial services are on track and compliant with regulation.”
