Sugi, an app that enables users to check the carbon impact of their investments, launched this week. Aimed at retail investors, Sugi is the first platform in the UK allowing users to check the carbon impact of their investments and compare with industry benchmarks to help them build a greener portfolio that is in line with their values.
Unlike ESG ratings, which are typically complex and targeted at institutional investors and asset managers, Sugi – which is free to use – shows users the annual carbon impact of each investment in absolute numbers, alongside an industry average and carbon data for similar investments in the market.
The Sugi public beta is now live and users can sign up at www.sugi.earth
Impact data for over 15,000 listed equities
The app displays impact data for over 15,000 listed equities – 95% of the listed equities market – over 3,500 exchange traded funds (ETFs) and certain actively managed funds, with plans to introduce a wider range of funds – and more environmental data – in the coming months.
Users link their investment portfolios, which can include ISAs and SIPPs, to Sugi via Moneyhub’s Open Finance API, enabling them to access personalised impact data. Moneyhub, a market-leading Open Finance data, intelligence and payments platform, connects to more than 80 online investment platforms, covering the majority of the UK market.
The app was founded by Josh Gregory, who, after building a 10-year career in investment funds, green finance and conservation, became increasingly frustrated with the lack of clarity surrounding green investing, particularly within retail investment.
According to Gregory:
“While COVID has accelerated awareness and demand of green investing, it’s hard for retail investors to take action. Research shows that over 75% of UK investors want their investments to have a positive impact; however, only a small proportion of people actually follow through with it. The reasons for this vary. Sustainable investing is full of jargon and investors are rightly concerned about greenwashing. Another problem is ESG ratings: they’re meant to simplify complex issues but are themselves very confusing – even for experienced retail investors. All of this ultimately stops more people getting involved.”
Moneyhub is the leading Open Finance platform that enhances the lifetime financial wellness of people, their communities and their businesses. Moneyhub’s APIs and white label solutions power businesses – both from within and from outside of financial services. Providing data connections and intelligence, Moneyhub also initiates Open Banking payments to enable hyper-personalised experiences that drive customer engagement.
The company takes consumer data security seriously and has been instrumental in the roll-out of Open Banking from its beginning. Providing Open Finance solutions since 2014, Moneyhub is authorised as AISP and PISP by the FCA, ISO-27001 certified, a founding member of FDTA and a member of EMA.
Samantha Seaton, CEO of Moneyhub, added: “Until now, aligning an individual investor’s portfolio with their own values has been virtually impossible, but by utlising the power of Open Banking and Open Finance, we are able to make it easy for investors to build greener portfolios. Our partnership with Sugi demonstrates the true potential of Open Finance and its ability to solve real-world, complex financial issues, beyond account aggregation and payments.”
