ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund has announced the launch of ICICI Prudential ESG Fund, an open-ended equity scheme which encourages sustainable investing, by investing in companies which follow Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) theme. Companies will be assigned a composite ESG score based on the factors mentioned and exposure will be taken in companies by assessing them on the mentioned factors. The New Fund Offer (NFO) opens on September21, 2020 and closes on October 05,2020.

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Speaking on the launch of the product, Nimesh Shah, MD & CEO at ICICI Prudential AMC said, “ESG investing is synonymous with sustainable investing. In the coming years, ESG way of investing will be a new normal in India as most of the millennial & young population in India are more conscious and diligent while making an investment decision. Majority of studies highlights that companies with good ESG scores tick-off most of the check-boxes for investing, tends to mitigate Environmental & Social risks and tends to have stronger cash flows, lower borrowing costs and durable returns.”

Shah went on to add that ESG focused companies show better growth which may translate into better wealth creation for investors and could demonstrate better resilience in downturns.

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ICICI Prudential ESG Fund addresses the growing need of Responsible Investing and allows investors to benefit from investing in companies which are able to maintain suitable ESG scores.

In India, the ESG concept is at a nascent stage and has huge scope to explore. Whereas globally, Responsible Investing i.e. ESG-based investing has been present for a while, with investor happily accepting this concept as showcased through the flows received in 2019 (154 USD Billion) as opposed to 2009 (21 USD Billion).Source: Morningstar Direct, Data as of December 2019.