Classification Scheme for Sustainable Investments - Accelerating the Just and Sustainable Transition of the Real Economy

Abstract

In recent years, there has been an enormous dynamic of investments in the ESG and sustainability context - especially in Europe (GSIA, 2021). This applies both in terms of volume and in terms of product innovations or investment strategies. In order to reflect the overall development of the market, an SRI classification system has been established, which is used by the national Social Investments Forums (SIFs), EUROSIF as well as on a global level by GSIA (Eurosif, 2022). In parallel, legislators have imposed new regulatory requirements that many also use for product classification, although this was not the intention of the EU. Both these developments have in common that it is not clear to what extent individual investments are actively contributing to the transition of the real economy. This paper proposes a new classification of sustainable investments combining double materiality, impact and SRI investment strategies. The result is a new terminology that includes an investment’s ambition to contribute to a sustainable transition of the real economy.

Keywords: impact investments, transition, ESG, sustainable investments

JEL Classification: G11, G15, G23, G24