An overwhelming majority (91 per cent) of investors in alternatives believe that the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) will help the financial industry address pressing environmental and social issues. 

A quarter of them already integrate the SDGs into their investment activities in some way, while another 40 per cent plan to do so within the next two years.
 
In a new study, LGT Capital Partners surveyed over 200 investors in alternatives (including pension funds, endowments and insurers from 28 countries). The survey assesses how investors integrate ESG into their investment activities, their views on the SDGs, and their requirements for greater ESG integration in the future.
 
The research found that 89 per cent of investors believe the SDGs will create new investment opportunities. While only a tenth of them currently assess the impact of investee companies on the SDGs, 40 per cent plan on doing so in the next two years.
 
Investors stated that Goal 13 (Climate Action) and Goal 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy) are their top two SDGs to address in their investment frameworks. More broadly, investors have a preference for SDGs that can be linked to specific investment opportunities, such as clean water, health and education.
 
Tycho Sneyers, Managing Partner at LGT Capital Partners and board member at UN PRI, says: “Ninety one per cent of investors believe the SDGs will help the financial industry to address pressing environmental and social issues. As such, investors are increasingly turning to the SDGs to make their ESG and sustainable investment activities more outcome-oriented. The SDGs broaden the ESG scope from risk management to value creation in financial, natural and social capital."