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MSCI Inc. is the world’s largest provider of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Indexes1 with over 1,500 equity and fixed income ESG Indexes designed to help institutional investors more effectively benchmark ESG investment performance and manage, measure and report on ESG mandates.

MSCI Inc. offers a range of Climate Indexes for investors who seek to incorporate climate risks and opportunities into their investment process. For more information, visit msci.com/climate-indexes

30 years of ESG Indexes

Take a look at the history of ESG indexes in our timeline below and explore the interactive here. We highlight key milestones in the evolution of ESG indexes since 1990, beginning with the launch of the Domini 400 Social Index (now the MSCI KLD 400 Social Index), through to the launch of the MSCI Fixed Income ESG Indexes in 2020. We also highlight significant developments such as MSCI's acquisition of Carbon Delta in 2019.





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MSCI ESG Index Framework

MSCI ESG Index framework

Incorporating ESG into your investment strategy or product development typically starts with understanding your ESG objectives. We have organized our indexes into three categories: screen, integrate, and target. To learn more, visit What is ESG.

Download factsheet (PDF, 194 KB) (opens in a new tab)

Interactive Assets

ESG Indexes

 



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      How can the investor

       

       

      How can investors use the MSCI ESG & Climate Indexes?

      The MSCI ESG Indexes are designed to provide institutional investors with effective and transparent tools to integrate ESG or Climate considerations in their investment process and portfolios.2

      The MSCI ESG & Climate indexes: designed to support investors seeking to align their benchmarks with their objectives:


      The MSCI ESG Ratings and Climate Metrics from MSCI ESG Research LLC serve as an input into the MSCI ESG Indexes. Learn more about MSCI ESG Ratings here.

      MSCI ESG Research

      MSCI ESG Research is a pioneer in measuring forward looking ESG risk and use of alternative data and AI technology, with deepest history and 40+ years of experience3 in objectively measuring and modelling ESG performance

      Broad ESG Ratings

      Broad ESG Ratings coverage of 14,000 companies representing more than 680,000 securities with 90% of equity and fixed income market value 4

      Index profile

       

      Index Profile Tool

      MSCI is pleased to publish the metrics and the methodology disclosures for all EU regulated MSCI equity and blended indexes, including MSCI ESG indexes and non-ESG indexes.

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      MSCI ESG EXPERIENCE AND LEADERSHIP

      MSCI ESG experience and leadership5


      MSCI ESG Research

      • First ESG provider to assess companies based on industry materiality, dating back to 1999. Only dataset with live history (12+ years) demonstrating economic relevance6
      • Objective rules based ESG ratings, with an average 45% of data,7 coming from alternative data sources, utilizing AI tech to extract and verify unstructured data
      • First ESG ratings provider to measure and embed companies’ ESG risk exposure 8

      Additional information

      MSCI Inc.

      • First ESG Index: MSCI’s KLD 400 Index is the longest running ESG index with 30 years of live history9 and above-benchmark returns since 199410
      • No simulated history: ESG index history going back over 10 years for MSCI World, back to 2013 for MSCI Emerging Markets
      • First to launch Low Carbon Indexes to address the two dimensions of carbon emissions and fossil fuel reserves in September 2014. 11
      • First to launch Provisional Climate Change EU Climate Transition and EU Paris-Aligned Indexes in November 201912


      Climate Solutions Product card without image

      Learn more about our ESG solutions

      Our team of experts is focused on in-depth research, ratings and analysis of the environmental, social and governance-related business practices of thousands of global companies.

      Sustainable Finance

      ESG and climate regulation and disclosure resource center for institutional investors, managers and advisors.
      Learn more

      Introducing MSCI Climate Change Indexes

      The indexes are designed to measure opportunities and risks associated with the transition to a low carbon economy.
      Read more

      Index Profile Search Tool

      Search by index name or code to explore ESG metrics for all EU-regulated MSCI indexes.
      Explore tool

      ESG Solutions for Issuers

      Interaction between MSCI ESG Research and the companies and fixed income issuers we rate continues to expand at a rapid pace.
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      Net-Zero Solutions

      To empower investors to analyze and report on their portfolios’ exposures to transition and physical climate risk.
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      Circular Economy Indexes

      Suite of five new indexes that seek to represent the performance of companies that are associated with the Circular Economy.
      Read more

      Sustainable Finance

      ESG and climate regulation and disclosure resource center for institutional investors, managers and advisors.
      Learn more

      Introducing MSCI Climate Change Indexes

      The indexes are designed to measure opportunities and risks associated with the transition to a low carbon economy.
      Read more

      Index Profile Search Tool

      Search by index name or code to explore ESG metrics for all EU-regulated MSCI indexes.
      Explore tool

      ESG Solutions for Issuers

      Interaction between MSCI ESG Research and the companies and fixed income issuers we rate continues to expand at a rapid pace.
      Learn more

      Net-Zero Solutions

      To empower investors to analyze and report on their portfolios’ exposures to transition and physical climate risk.
      Learn more

      Circular Economy Indexes

      Suite of five new indexes that seek to represent the performance of companies that are associated with the Circular Economy.
      Read more

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      1 Source: MSCI Inc. as of March 2020

      2 AUM tracking or benchmarked to MSCI ESG indexes

      3 Through our legacy companies KLD, Innovest, IRRC, and GMI Ratings

      4 7 Source: MSCI ESG Research as of as of June 2020, coverage subject to change

      5 MSCI ESG Indexes and MSCI Analytics utilize information from, but are not provided by, MSCI ESG Research LLC. MSCI Indexes are products of MSCI Inc. and are administered by MSCI Limited.

      6 Origins of MSCI ESG Ratings established in 1999. Produced time series data since 2007.

      7 Source: MSCI ESG Research 2,434 constituents of the MSCI ACWI Index as of November 30, 2017.

      8 Through our legacy companies KLD, Innovest, IRRC, and GMI Ratings. Origins of MSCI ESG Ratings established in 1999. Produced time series data since 2007.

      9 According to KLD 2008. The MSCI KLD 400 Social Index was launched on May 01, 1990

      10  MSCI KLD 400 Social Index factsheet https://www.msci.com/documents/10199/904492e6-527e-4d64-9904-c710bf1533c6

      11 MSCI press release: https://www.msci.com/documents/10199/447d3ba7-e215-45c9-8b14-74031a80f4bc

      12 MSCI press release: https://www.msci.com/documents/10199/0663a2c2-5919-8385-3bf9-7581c40905f9

       

      Sources for Timeline:

      1https://ir.msci.com/static-files/5956fe36-a5ea-437f-9323-28a7c897b106

      2https://www.csrwire.com/press_releases/23136-KLD-Launches-Global-Sustainability-Index-GSI-

      3https://ir.msci.com/static-files/15e6a432-4c0a-424a-ae5c-e79490273e90

      4https://www.msci.com/documents/10199/248121/Barclays_MSCI_ESG_Fixed_Income_Indices_-_FINAL.pdf/e70bf030-1373-40ad-a725-05bf9005fea8?version=1.0

      5https://ir.msci.com/static-files/b2c28e7c-c5ac-43db-8569-5878ff44b81e

      6https://www.msci.com/www/blog-posts/msci-introduces-esg-quality/0308840040

      7https://ir.msci.com/news-releases/news-release-details/msci-strengthen-climate-risk-capability-acquisition-carbon-delta

      8https://www.bloomberg.com/press-releases/2020-02-11/bloomberg-and-msci-expand-esg-fixed-income-index-suite-launch-new-esg-high-yield-indices