SUSTAINABILITY APPROACH
Sustainable investment in motion
Sustainable and responsible investing refers to an investment approach in which ECBF aims to achieve financial returns while promoting long-term environmental value.
At ECBF sustainability isn't just a goal—it's our guiding principle. Sustainable investments at ECBF require a contribution to climate change mitigation and integrating a set of responsible investment principles throughout the investment cycle to guide investment idea generation and portfolio construction.
Our vision of a prosperous economy realigned with nature reflects ECBF’s commitment to value creation in line with our financial and sustainable objectives.
Sustainable investment drives the collective behaviour of all our ECBF team members, underpins our business, and guides our day-to-day decision-making.
Responsible Investment
ECBF actively integrates environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors into every investment decision ESG principles throughout the investment cycle, focusing on companies that already create positive environmental impact, validating assumptions on ESG materiality, pursuing ESG risk mitigation, uncovering potential opportunities, and committing time and expertise in guiding companies on ESG matters.
Active Ownership
We engage with companies on ESG matters influencing their long-term growth, and positively influence corporate behavior to improve portfolio risk-reward performance, develop more sustainable business practices, and materialize its impact.
ESG Integration
We identify and assess material ESG factors into the process of investment screening, due diligence, decision-making, and management practices to better capture long-term returns for investors.
Transparency
We ensure accountability and progress through regular ESG monitoring and transparently report to our limited partners on portfolio ESG performance and are held accountable according to regulatory obligations and fiduciary duty.
Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulations (SFDR)
SFDR is a major piece of EU legislation which sets out sustainability-related disclosure requirements for financial market participants. This regulations aim to build trust and increase transparency and disclosure around sustainable finance products and investments.
Particularly, SFDR inform investors on investment sustainable target, how sustainability risks are taken into account in the management of investment funds and whether the main adverse effects of investment decisions on sustainability factors are considered.
CLimate Change Mitigation Objective
While investees’ positive impact on several EU Taxonomy environmental objectives is desirable, measurable and evidence-based contribution to climate change mitigation is the prerequisite for investment allocation.
Principle Adverse Impacts (PAI)
We assess qualitative and quantitative PAI indicators against industry specific thresholds. The PAIs display the potential negative impacts investments have on various sustainability factors.
Do Not Significant Harm (DNSH)
We disclose how our sustainable investments do not cause significant harm to any other environmental or social sustainable investment objective.
Climate Risk Assessment
We conduct a probability adjusted impact assessment of a set of chronical and acute physical climate risks, and transition ESG risks. Level of impact and likelihood is considered and factored into ECBF’s financial model.
Systemic Impact through collaborative engagement
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ECBF is member of the European network of over 605 GPs and LPs with strong focus on developing industry and ESG standards. ECBF benefits from building capacity, adopting best practices, and contributing to working groups.
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ECBF is a signatory of PRI, the world’s leading proponent of responsible investment. PRI continuously raise the bar for the quality of ESG practices and allow ECBF to engage in several collaborative stewardship initiatives.
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BVAI
ECBF is part of BVAI (Bundesverband Alternative Investments e.V.) roundtable on sustainable financial disclousers which inputs are structured into a high quality feedback to ESAs (European Supervisory Authorities).
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ECBF is signatory of the Finance Statement on Plastic Pollution, a Global Initiative to Combat overcome such environmental threat.
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ECBF endorsed the Spring initiative, a PRI stewardship program dedicated to convening investors to safeguarding our planet’s biodiversity.
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ECBF is part of Impact VCs, an initiative that gives VCs the community and resources needed to accelerating impact within venture.
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ECBF is advisor of CircHive, a project pursuing the recognition, measurement, and reporting on the value of nature, mainstreaming biodiversity footprinting and natural capital accounting.
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ECBF is an official nominator of The Earthshot Prize, a global challenge centred around five ‘Earthshots’ – ambitious goals for 2030 to fix our biggest environmental problems.
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ECBF is member of VentureESG, an investor community of 500+ VC funds and 100+ asset owners and LPs committed to the meaningful integration of ESG and responsible investing in venture capital.
