The Largest U.S. ESG Fund Fails to Hold Direct Renewables
Parnassus Core Equity Fund, America's largest ESG fund by assets, totaling $25B, has admitted that the fund does not explicitly hold any renewable energy companies. Instead, Parnassus has chosen to hold positions across the industrial gas, machinery manufacturing, technology and up until 2018, fossil-fuel industries. Over the last few years, many funds involved with the ESG industry received criticism, pointing to the fact that that majority of ESG labelled funds were holding primarily large-cap technology stocks with "shiny green labels". When asked why the firm refuses to hold any renewable companies, Parnassus Investments' co-manager had this to say:
“It’s true that we don’t own any pure-play solar manufacturers, but the portfolio is full of companies that are committed to the transition away from carbon."
Billogram has closed on a $15M Venture round that included Stockholm, Sweden-based Single-Family Office Inbox Capital
Doug Foshee's Family Office, Sallyport Investments, has participated in a Series A funding round that totaled $15M for VRGL, a data extraction and analytics company
Vulpes Investment Management engaged in a Series A investment with Propseller, a modern real estate agency, totaling $12M
KEC Holdings took part in a $17.3M Series B follow-on deal with RentSpree, an online platform designed to simplify renting
Bitcoin Experiences a Declining Volatility, Perhaps Signaling a Bottom
Following hawkish comments from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, Bitcoin prices once again dipped below $20,000, a figure believed to be a critical price support level for the cryptocurrency. Experts point to a "poor macro environment" and an overall risk averse appetite among some of the space's largest investors as the cause of Bitcoin's decline. Over recent months, Bitcoin has succumb to smaller intraday swings, with the cryptocurrency last month climbing on average 1.4% compared to 3.4% just a few months ago in June. Many analysts believe the $20K number is an important psychological level, with a significant break likely initiating a further decline.
“I always view crypto as the riskiest of risk assets and it coincides quite a bit with some of the more frothier areas of the equity markets...It makes sense when you have risk tolerance and risk aversion flying all over the place that you’re going to see a little bit of volatility pick up."
Shawn Cruz, TD Ameritrade
India's Richest Breaks into the World's Top 3
Indian businessman Gautam Adani has passed Bernard Arnault as the third richest individual in the world according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Adani, who recently celebrated his 60th birthday, is best known for founding and serving as Chairman of Adani Group, an Indian multinational conglomerate. The group holds stakes across a number of verticals including port management, electric power generation, renewable energy, food processing and more. Adani Group's holdings have rocketed, with some increasing more than 1,000% since 2020. Those increases have equated to a net worth increase of more than $60B in this year alone.
“Adani was able to move past some of the world’s richest US billionaires partly because they’ve recently boosted their philanthropy. Gates said in July he was transferring $20 billion to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, while Warren Buffett has already donated more than $35 billion to the charity."
Alexander Sazonov, Bloomberg
Why the World's Richest are Hiring Women to Manage their Wealth
According to a Business Insider report, nearly 90% of the world's billionaires are men, yet some of the highest profile family offices have entrusted women to manage their wealth. Families such as the Pritzkers, Google co-founder Sergey Brin and the Chanel Fortune heirs have all hired women to run their portfolios. Citing an Institutional Investor report, women have historically favored conservative investing during times of negative market sentiment, ideal for many family offices who are looking to preserve generational wealth for the long-term.
“A lot of men do great, but there is a small section that aren't as collaborative and don't get along as well with families, whereas a lot of women are able to navigate the family office dynamics."
Chicago, IL-based RIA Hightower has announced a strategic investment in Highland Private Wealth Management, a $1.2B wealth advisory (Cision)
Two Women-led RIAs merge to form a $460M RIA, focused on serving women in financial transitions (WM)
MAI Capital Management, a Cleveland, OH-based RIA has entered into a partnership with Dexter L. James, who will be assuming the role of Senior Wealth Advisor and Managing Director (BW)
Written by:
Andrew Popp | Data Research Associate
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