ESG | Empowering Sustainable Growth

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The world is facing pressing challenges to ensure a sustainable future for our planet. The finance sector is a vital contributor to the global sustainability agenda. It can empower sustainable finance, by incorporating environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors into investment decision-making. It can also support the allocation of capital to sustainable initiatives.

Euronext has a special position in the financial ecosystem. It serves the real economy by bringing together buyers and sellers in transparent, efficient and reliable trading venues. In this key role, Euronext has a responsibility to the whole finance community, not only to ensure financial stability, but to contribute decisively to a sustainable growth model in the countries in which it operates.

Dual Ambition

Drive investment in innovative, sustainable products and services

through secure and transparent markets, in continuous collaboration with our financial community.

Inspire and promote tangible sustainable practices

within the company and towards our community, by respecting and developing our people and by supporting our ecosystem.

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Five material impact areas

Euronext carried out a pan-European stakeholder consultation process, to identify the ESG issues that our stakeholders believe should be our main focus.

Based on these results, we defined the key issues on which we can have the most impact in the economy, society and the environment. These key issues are grouped into five material impact areas: Our Markets, Our Partners, Our People, Our Society and Our Environment.

Each material impact area supports one or several of the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), part of the “2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development” to which Euronext has committed as an Official Partner of the Sustainable Stock Exchanges Initiative (SSE).

Our Markets

As a market infrastructure, Euronext is in a unique position to support the transition to a sustainable European economy.

We offer our issuers a tailored programme to increase ESG knowledge. This solution also allows them to connect with relevant stakeholders and advocate for ESG goals and interests.

Euronext helps investors identify listed products that meet ESG criteria. Our market players can invest in a wide range of Sustainable Indices, ETFs, Derivatives, and Bonds.

ESG services for companies

Listed companies play a key role in the transition to a more sustainable economy. Euronext supports issuers in the current ESG evolution, with a tailored programme to increase their ESG knowledge, connect them with relevant stakeholders and advocate for their goals and interests.

Advising and supporting issuers on best practices for the future

ESG Guidance

Euronext has published a set of ESG guidelines to inspire and promote tangible sustainable practices as well as to help our issuers achieve them. For many companies, integrating sustainability into a business strategy has proved to support corporate
reputation and further financial growth.

Corporate Services

Euronext Corporate Services educates companies and organisations on integrating environmental considerations, and provides them with tools to ensure they adopt the best practices in terms of good Corporate Governance and ESG reporting. Euronext Corporate Services offers tailor-made advisory to assist issuers in building their own ESG ambition to reach out to new investors and promote their sustainable strategy towards the markets.

Europe’s leading exchange for eco-industry financing | Euronext helps innovative companies raise finance.

Cleantech

Euronext supports climate-friendly innovation by helping innovative cleantech companies raise finance. Cleantech companies use resource-efficient, environmentally positive business practices in carrying out their operations, or develop, create and
sell resource-efficient and sustainable products and services. Their models range through production, storage and distribution of renewable or low carbon energy sources, pollution mitigation, conservation, and restoration.

TechShare

Over the past years, Euronext has dedicated tailored resources to promoting and enhancing the visibility of innovative companies, through financial literacy initiatives including TechShare and supporting equity research for innovative companies, namely Cleantech.

ESG products for investors

Euronext’s ESG offer is designed to help investors identify listed products that meet environmental, social and governance criteria, while giving market players the opportunity to invest in the leading pan-European exchange and trade our wide range of Sustainable Indices, ETFs, Derivatives, and Bonds.

ESG indices

Euronext has created over 40 ESG indices, designed to support common approaches to environmental, social and governance investing. Euronext ESG indices are based on a fully transparent and rules-based selection process, with valuable input from expert partners in the field: Vigeo Eiris, CDP, Carbone 4, GRESB and ISS-oekom. Euronext ESG indices serve as a benchmark for
investors to incorporate Environmental, Social and Governance considerations into their investment decision. For issuers, being part of an ESG index facilitates analyst coverage, draws the attention of specialised investors and boosts their visibility.

Euronext is also on the forefront of Blue Economy with a customised blue index created in 2019: Euronext Water and Ocean Europe 40 EW.

Euronext’s top ESG indices include:

Sustainable ETFs

Euronext listed some of the first ESG ETFs in Europe, including a BNP Paribas ETF based on Euronext’s Low Carbon 100 Europe index in 2008. Today, over 50 ESG-related ETFs that track companies engaged with sustainable investments or environmentally positive initiatives are listed on Euronext markets.

Sustainable ETFs on Euronext markets are listed by leading Asset Management firms in Europe and the US, such as Amundi, BlackRock, BNP Paribas, Lyxor and State Street Global Advisors.A few examples include:

Euronext welcomed some of the first ESG ETFs in Europe, including a BNP Paribas ETF based on Euronext’s Low Carbon 100 Europe index back in 2008.

ESG bonds

Euronext launched Euronext ESG Bonds, an online platform consolidating and highlighting all eligible and consenting ESG bond issuers and securities listed in each Euronext jurisdiction. The offer now includes Sustainability, Social, Green, Blue, Transition, and all SDG-linked bonds linked to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.

The segment gives issuers the opportunity to increase their ‘sustainable visibility’ and to demonstrate their ESG credentials, creating an engaged community of the leading issuers involved in sustainable investments. It is designed to attract issuers across the globe, not just European issuers. The platform also reduces search costs for investors seeking sustainable investments and provides them with confidence in the sustainable nature of their portfolio.

Across Euronext Amsterdam, Brussels, Dublin, Lisbon, Oslo and Paris, there were approximately 250 sustainable bond securities listed from more than a hundred of issuers, representing over €100 billion.

Sustainable financial derivatives

Euronext has launched a futures contract based on the Euronext® Eurozone ESG Large 80 index, powered by Vigeo Eiris.

The index is a public benchmark with deep liquidity designed to meet the needs of end investors, while supporting market participants in their own commitment to sustainability. It selects the highest-ranking companies in their sector based on their support for energy transition and has strong exclusion factors regarding social, governance, UNGC, coal, tobacco and weapons.

Euronext’s first ESG futures contract provides an effective hedging tool and allows investors to gain exposure to the sustainable economy in the Eurozone, while benefiting from clearing efficiencies at the portfolio level.

The futures contract is supported by four market makers (BNP Paribas, DRW, Société Générale and Optiver), and its attractive pricing was designed to encourage climate action, reflecting our view that taking part in sustainable growth should be accessible to all.

Commodity derivatives

The Euronext commodities franchise is central to Europe’s agricultural ecosystem. It provides the whole value chain (agricultural producers, exporters, trading houses, refiners, processors, manufacturers) with hedging tools allowing them to better manage the price risk exposure inherent in the agricultural sector.

We offer trusted global and European benchmarks for Milling Wheat, Rapeseed and Corn, and are working to expand into new areas.

Our Partners

A central element of our work is the engagement with our customers, as well as the European and local public authorities and policymakers, to help shape the regulatory and policy issues that impact the financial sector and empower sustainable finance.

As a result of the European Commission’s Action Plan on Financing Sustainable Growth and the European Green Deal, a number of legislative proposals have been agreed, to incentivise investments in sustainable activities. This focus is reflected in our continuous ESG dialogue with the EU institutions, namely the Commission, Parliament and Member States in Council, as well as all relevant authorities in the Euronext jurisdictions.

Our People

Euronext promotes an environment that encourages collaborative work, learning and innovation. We support each employee in shaping his or her future and the future of the company, in an inclusive environment that values diversity.

Euronext strives to foster a mindset that complements our values and supports the company’s ambitions:

They underly all our actions and form a foundation that underpins the way we work.

Our Society

Euronext aims to be a model for the industry. We apply high ethical and legal standards of conduct in our business, our dealings with colleagues, employees, business partners, customers and communities. Our corporate governance reflects our strong focus on independence, oversight, and transparency.

Euronext supports institutions in each Euronext location. Our efforts focus on two key areas: financial literacy and blue economy, including oceans, seas and marine resources. Our employees are encouraged to contribute to local communities. Euronext supports training, volunteering, charity work and thought leadership.

Our Environment

Euronext is conscious of the challenges linked to climate change, the need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and to manage natural resources. We have fully integrated environmental issues into our activities and strategy.

Euronext carbon footprint and reduction

Transparency is at the core of our business. We disclose our carbon footprint for all three emissions' categories defined by the Greenhouse Gas Protocol (GHC). Euronext’s Global GHC emissions total 18.5 ktCO2eq according to Carbone 4, calculated under the GHG Protocol. We continue to work on reducing our environmental impact with the goals presented by the EU Commission.

Emissions are split into three categories by the Greenhouse Gas Protocol to better understand the source | Analysis based on 2020’s figures

Scope 1 | 270 tCO2eq

All direct emissions from an organisation or under its direct control.

(e.g. direct emission from buildings and other assets)

Scope 2 | 1,600 tCO2eq

Indirect emissions from electricity purchased and used by the organisation.

(e.g. electricity consumption)

Scope 3 | 16,600 tCO2eq

All other indirect emissions from activities of the organisation, occurring from sources they do not own or control (upstream and downstream).
Usually represent the greatest share of the carbon footprint

(e.g. Business travel, procurement, commuting)

Products and Services in 2020

In 2020 we made significant progress in our ESG ambitions.

We have launched new and innovative sustainable products and services, designed to provide a robust framework of tools for European capital markets to fuel sustainable growth.

In addition, Euronext became the first stock exchange to endorse the UN Global Compact’s nine Ocean Principles.

ESG URD 2020