Introduction to Taiwan Index Plus's "Taiwan Sustainability Assessment"
2024/10/31
Taiwan Index Plus and National Taipei University Collaborate to Promote Sustainable Development
Taiwan Index Plus has utilized data from the "Taiwan Sustainability Assessment" by National Taipei University to develop over a dozen ESG-related indices over three years, achieving significant performance in financial products. Recently, both parties transitioned their collaboration model by signing a technology transfer agreement, with Taiwan Index Plus acquiring the technology and ownership of the "Taiwan Sustainability Assessment" from Taipei University. This enables each party to leverage their strengths in industry and academia, enhancing both the depth and breadth of the assessment’s application, and is expected to create mutual benefits in sustainable development and responsible investment within Taiwan's financial market, continuously enhancing corporate value.
Since early 2020, Taiwan Index Plus has collaborated with the "Center for Corporate Sustainability Development at the College of Business, National Taipei University" to optimize the methodology of the "Taiwan Sustainability Assessment." Together, they established a joint committee to modularize the assessment results and further develop ESG-related information. Using the assessment data, Taiwan Index Plus has developed a diverse range of ESG-related indices, totaling 13 indices, of which more than 10 have been licensed to investment trusts and securities firms for the issuance of financial products such as ETFs, ETNs, and funds.
Among these, five ETFs approved by the Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) in Taiwan are classified as ESG Taiwan stock funds, accounting for over half of the total funds in this category, with total assets exceeding NT$42.6 billion, demonstrating notable performance. In recent years, international exchanges and index companies have increasingly considered assessment and database services as essential business activities, either through mergers or strategic partnerships, making this a rising trend.
Taiwan Index Plus stated that with the transfer of technology, the company now possesses the assessment system and local ESG database, which, combined with its foundational business and network, will continue to refine the "Taiwan Sustainability Assessment." This will expedite the commercial application of the database, supporting the implementation of ESG policies.
