HSBC Asset Management has launched the HSBC World ESG Biodiversity Screened Equity Ucits ETF, which will track the Euronext ESG Biodiversity Screen index.
The ETF will be classified as Article 8 under SFDR regulations, defined as ESG-linked but not a specific impact fund.
Its core focus will be investing in companies with strong biodiversity credentials for wholesale and institutional investors.
The ETF will be tracking the Euronext ESG Biodiversity Screened index series, a group of biodiversity screened benchmark indices based on a range of equities using Euronext World as the parent index.
The ESG Biodiversity Screened Index was launched in December 2021, developed in conjunction with HSBC, Euronext and French financial technology company Iceberg Data Lab (IDL).
Olga de Tapia, global head of ETF and indexing sales at HSBC AM, said: “We have a huge part to play in the protection and preservation of biodiversity, which can be achieved through ‘biodiversity aware’ investment processes and this ETF is hopefully a step in combatting the biodiversity crisis.”
The HSBC ETF is to apply three filters.
One is to be focused on socially responsible investment, another will be a negative ESG screen to remove the worst scoring quarter of constituents, and the third will be an IDL Corporate Biodiversity Footprint’ uplift’ of approximately 35% versus the parent index.
