The unstoppable rise of ESG
Events of 2020 and 2021 have reinforced business and societal shifts towards environmental, social and governance (ESG) priorities.
“Shareholders, other investors and issuers themselves are increasingly concerned by ESG,” says asset management partner Julien Bourgeois. “Environmental, social and governance issues are now reaching all corners of the global economy, and Dechert’s ESG working group brings together 40 lawyers across a dozen offices around the world to meet the need for integrated and specialist advice.” Responsible investing and sustainable finance are two areas where ESG factors are having a transformational
impact for clients. For example, SK Inc., a major South Korean conglomerate, has been an especially active investor, having recently acquired a minority stake in Monolith Materials, Inc., a U.S.-based leader in green hydrogen technologies. David Cho, head of Dechert’s Hong Kong office and Asia co-managing partner, says: “Investors and strategic acquirers around the world, including in Asia, are now really motivated by their own ESG commitments, but they also recognize that responsible investing can generate significant returns,
particularly in light of energy transition and other macro-economic factors.”
The increasing significance of ESG considerations in investment decisions
is visible across a wide range of business sectors. Dechert’s
London-based loans team recently represented funds managed by Ares Management Corporation’s European Direct Lending strategy on the provision of £1 billion of sustainability- linked debt facilities to the RSK Group, the largest sustainability-linked private credit financing to date.
16
Powered by FlippingBook