AC Ventures implements The Upright Project to measure ESG and impact and involve women leadership in the company to boost investment value.
Heaptalk, Jakarta — AC Ventures (ACV) conducted an elite summit of the private sector investment powerhouse and rising Indonesian startups to set an agenda for propelling ESG and gender lens investing in ASEAN.
During the elite summit agenda, the company observed that venture capital firms increasingly perceive a mandate from limited partners and industry stakeholders to ensure their portfolios are set up for a new imminent era of ESG best practices in Southeast Asia.
Moreover, in Indonesia, ESG compliance was always an afterthought for investors rather than a focal point. Nevertheless, with more institutional capital from overseas trying to penetrate the market, local venture capital firms and startups realized the requisites to quantify and report on their impacts on the environment and society massively to reach their subsequent funding rounds.
The Principal of ESG of AC Ventures, Lauren Blasco, stated, “When tech startups focus on establishing robust ESG measurement and reporting mechanisms, they make their operations more efficient and save money, discover new streams of revenue, and ensure they are on the best footing possible to future-proof their businesses. As a venture capital firm, we back our portfolio in this area to reduce risks and unlock new avenues for value. This prospective approach also prepares them for the upcoming ESG regulations expected in the ASEAN within the next years,”
AC Ventures implements The Upright Project, a technology company based in Finlandia, to measure ESG and impact according to Northern European standards. The platform covers SFDR PAI indicators, EU taxonomy metrics, and UN SDG metrics for 14,000+ companies.
The Upright Project enables more intelligent decision-making for institutional investors, consumers, and employees and owns 200+ organizations in 15 countries as clients. The metric that guides the firm’s hand is the net impact ratio. This percentage score quantifies how effectively a group of companies turns resources into positive impact.
Also, in its implementation, ACV and its portfolio recently ran baseline assessments across the four critical dimensions of environment, health, society, and knowledge. As a result, the firm’s overall net impact ratio delivered an above-average +37%, with the most significant areas being society and health. In providing helpful context, the Nasdaq Small Cap Index (NQUSS) recently featured an average net impact of +29%.
AC Ventures’ gender lens consideration to grow investment
On the other hand, regarding the gender lens, around 50% of ACV’s senior leadership roles are occupied by women. Across its portfolios, around 41% of figures are led by women. While female inclusion is an essential ingredient in any ESG-focused organization today, this matter also contains plenty of investment opportunities worth over US$421 billion.
“Investing in women-led businesses and backing female investors is a social responsibility and a financial masterstroke. These enterprises are crucibles of innovation, showing superior financial returns and resonating powerfully with today’s consumer values. They unlock untapped markets and stand as pillars of sustainable, responsible governance. Instead of seeing this matter as a niche strategy, we notice this point as a cornerstone of intelligent investing for the future,”
As additional information, this agenda is the ASEAN Business and Investment Summit (ABIS) sideline event. Adopting the Profit and Purpose: A New Era of ESG and Gender Lens Investing as the theme, this summit featured multiple exclusive attendees and investors, spanning International Finance Corporation (IFC), Sarona Asset Management, MAVCAP, Boston Consulting Group (BCG), and ACV’s portfolios, from MAKA Motors, Astro, and Aruna.
