In recent years, sustainability data has expanded greatly both in volume and variety due to increased investor interest, evolving ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) disclosure regulations, corporate efforts for more transparency and emerging innovative sources like geospatial data and Environmental DNA.
Effective governance and quality control are essential, along with leveraging sustainability data to discover innovative ways to speed up solution development.
In sustainable finance, leveraging insights from sustainability data can enhance the robustness of sustainable finance solutions, support in reporting analysis, identify and advise on KPIs for sustainable financial products, support informed decision-making based on ESG risk assessment, channel funds to thematic investing, and foster innovation in sustainable investment solutions.
During a Sustainability hackathon earlier this year, BNP Paribas convened specialists from various business lines, leveraged insights from Bloomberg sustainability data experts, and employed large language model (LLM)-based technology to identify innovative and actionable investment opportunities.
Using Bloomberg’s and BNP Paribas’ own sustainability and financial datasets, covering a wide range of information, from water stress indicators to corporate carbon emissions and supply chain resilience, teams worked on developing new thematic investment products, sharpening the client advisory approach and increasing precision of risk assessments.
The scope of practical cases encompassed a number of global sustainability challenges, such as circular economy, climate adaptation and resilience, sustainable agriculture, and water management.
Teams used sustainability and financial data from Bloomberg and BNP Paribas to develop thematic investment products, refine client advisory methods, and identify areas to enhance robustness of ESG risk assessments.
As noted by Jeremy Neyrou, head of sustainable and strategic innovation at BNP Paribas, the results of the hackathon demonstrate that combining specialisms can “raise the standard for ESG precision and impact.”
Several prototype solutions successfully passed the initial review during the hackathon. These solutions will be taken forward to either enhance the current offerings or lead to new solutions available for the bank’s clients. As mentioned by Olivier Houin, head of Global Markets sustainability COO at BNP Paribas, “This hackathon, powered by Bloomberg’s ESG data, inspired talents across BNP Paribas and Bloomberg to drive innovation and create compelling content. This collaboration will facilitate our ongoing efforts to deliver new thematic investment products.”
Marie d’Argentré, head of ESG Data and Transformation for CIB at BNP Paribas, mentioned that testing the BNP Paribas ESG risk evaluation framework against alternative tools helped to “ensure that BNP Paribas is staying ahead of the curve and leverage data that is not only accurate but also contextually relevant”, and re-confirm that “BNP Paribas is equipped with a robust, leading-edge approach to ESG risk assessment.”
Constance Chalchat, Chief Sustainability Officer, CIB and Global Markets at BNP Paribas concluded: “Data-driven innovations are essential to developing effective financial solutions that generate positive and sustainable outcomes for businesses, financial institutions, and investors. Utilising pertinent data enables us to support clients with customised and actionable insights in their sustainability efforts.”
Read about key takeaways from the hackathon on the Bloomberg website.
