To further demonstrate Reply’s commitment to the issue of sustainability, the 2022 iteration of the challenge will be zero-impact and completely green. Thanks to a collaboration with LifeGate, a reference point for issues related to sustainability, the overall environmental impact generated by the organisation and conduct of the event has been calculated. The amount of CO2 produced will be compensated through the creation and protection of growing forests in Madagascar. The challenge is organised in partnership with Banca Generali.
Sustainability is more than a trend
Sustainability is more than a trend, it is here to stay. It is becoming increasingly visible in all areas of our lives. We cannot preserve our planet or continue to function as it is if we do not make sustainable choices.
But what does Sustainability mean and why is it important?
Often misunderstood, sustainability is considered only in the context of energy sustainability and reduction of carbon emissions. However, sustainability is much more. It also covers areas like social equity and economic development.
Various international agreements have inspired the financial sector, both banks and institutional investors, to reconsider their current business models. The biggest trigger of these changes was, without a doubt, the Paris Agreement in 2015. It introduced the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the chance to evaluate impacts on many different levels, not just solely on climate. Recently, we see a strong increase in sustainable commitments made by the industry. Canada-based financial services company Scotiabank announced on 15th March a new series of sustainable finance and climate commitments, including a goal to mobilise $350 billion in capital for climate-related finance by 2030.
Adopting sustainable practices can bring a lot of benefits, both short and long-term. In 2020 the U.S. sustainable equity funds outperformed their traditional peer funds by a median total return of 4.3 percentage points and sustainable bond funds outperformed their traditional peer funds by a median total return of 0.9 percentage points. Such results show that sustainable investing is not only virtuous for the planet but can be good for business.
It is important to learn how to assess the sustainability of an investment in a product, company, or business, hence the benefit of participating in the Reply Sustainable Investment Challenge.
Are you ready for the challenge?
A team of experts from Reply have designed a challenge that promotes learning about sustainable investment and trading. This is an individual international online challenge for players aged 16 and above who are not professional financial advisors. Since it is a challenge, fantastic rewards will be given to the winners.
The rules of the challenge are very simple. Participants will have at their disposal virtual capital of $ 1,000,000 to invest in real-time in the US market. The aim of the game is to maximise returns by investing in companies with a high ESG rating. Participants will be given the chance to invest in a wide range of financial products: options, stocks, ETFs and bonds, with limits applied to portfolio composition and the number of trades that can be executed during the challenge.
Being able to look for information regarding a company’s sustainability is part of the challenge, hence ESG ratings will not be provided to participants. It is up to the player to do their own ESG research and to include this in their investment strategy. In addition to deepening knowledge of ESG ratings, the competition will allow participants to expand their general finance and investment skills thanks to exclusive e-learning content that will be made available on the challenge website.
The game will reward good and sustainable investments, while significantly penalising participants for choosing low ESG rated companies. The final ranking will be based mainly on the weighted P&L so trading should always bear in mind the Sustainability goals of the chosen investment strategy.
Are you taking the challenge?
Registration will close on March 25th, sign up and win.
For more information:
https://www.esgtoday.com/scotiabank-launches-350-billion-climate-finance-commitment/
https://www.morganstanley.com/ideas/esg-funds-outperform-peers-coronavirus#:~:text=Key%20Findings,return%20of%200.9%20percentage%20points.