Trysha Daskam has made appearances on many of Tom Fox’s podcasts over the years; she comes to this week’s show to share her ESG expertise. Trysha holds the positions of Managing Director and Head of ESG Strategy at Silver Regulatory Associates, a boutique consulting firm offering ESG services, compliance and regulatory services, and due diligence services. Today, she joins him to discuss the expectations for ESG significance and regulatory concerns moving into 2022.
The Work of Silver Regulatory Associates
“We take a really unique approach to ESG,” Trysha tells Tom. At Silver, they’re thoughtful about building ESG programs from the regulator’s perspective. By evaluating an investment manager through the lens of their investment strategy, Silver understands how ESG can be incorporated in a natural way, allowing the programs to really thrive.
How Important is ESG Training?
There should definitely be a focus on competency across regulatory firms, especially with the increase of investment managers being on board with ESG responsibilities. Trysha has seen an uptick in clients requesting ESG training in order to understand the responsibilities of the different members of the firm, including investment professionals and compliance professionals. “It’s correct to think about your ESG program with the same cautiousness and prudence you would use for any other policy or procedure,” she states.
The Growth of ESG
The momentum of ESG in 2021 has influenced more and more organizations to voluntarily align their company values with those of ESG, and, as a result, financial services are starting to feel the pressure.
What to Expect, Moving Forward
Earlier in the year, Silver issued a report discussing the areas that private investment fund managers should focus on, going into 2022. For Trysha, the key takeaways were:
- Managers should prepare for enhanced ESG disclosure; most notably, the introduction of a climate disclosure regulation is to be expected in the near term.
- It is likely that managers will be continually pressed to evidence the ESG-related claims they make in their policies and writings.
- Firms will be required to articulate their approach to climate risk and adaptation; “Long gone are the days where managers run an investment strategy that doesn’t see climate as the most material risk to their process,” Trysha remarks.
Regulation and ESG Reporting in 2022
Trysha cites greenwashing as the core of every regulatory movement being seen today. Though the EU is the most vocal about this, the SEC has also stated that they view greenwashing as a major risk in the current marketplace. Where there is an opportunity to use language describing an approach to ESG, there needs to be auditing of whether or not it is authentic to what a manager is actually accomplishing.
DEI (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion) is another important issue. Managers are responding to DEI questions from their investor base on a more routine basis, and DEI-related questions have matured over time. Trysha believes that this will continue going into 2022, and there could be regulatory obligations around transparent reporting out of the SEC in the future.
She and Tom also discuss the frustration surrounding the lack of international standards for framework, and whether or not it will be addressed in 2022. Trysha thinks that some light is beginning to be shed on the evaluation, and ultimately, the development of these standards.
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Trysha Daskam | LinkedIn | Silver Regulatory Associates
