Argentum’s own activities
SDG | Target | Indicator | Status 2023 |
5.5: «Ensure women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership at all levels of decision-making in political, economic and public life | Percentage of women in the company overall, in specialist functions and in management. | The percentage of women is 33.3% in the company overall, 10% in specialist functions, and 0% in management. | |
8.3: «Promote development-oriented policies that support productive activities, decent job creation, entrepreneurship, creativity and innovation, and encourage the formalization and growth of micro-, small- and medium-sized enterprises, including through access to financial services | Number of new investments in fund and amount invested in the funds. | NOK 500 million in nine funds (primary). | |
12.6: «Encourage companies, especially large and transnational companies, to adopt sustainable practices and to integrate sustainability information into their reporting cycle» | Number of managers who have taken concrete steps to further develop their ESG policies/ESG routines. | 50 out of 86 managers (58%) | |
Take ugent action to combat climate change and its impacts. | Development in CO2 emissions among portfolio companies that have reported on this | 71 Companies. Scope 1: Decrease 17% (Median decrease 0.3%). Scope 2: Increase 10% (median increase 5%) |
Argentum annually reviews ESG in its own operations. This review is based on our sustainability strategy, and we look at selected targets of the UN Sustainable Development Goals and indicators from the UN's Global Reporting Initiative (GRI). Below is a summary of this review for 2023.
Argentum and the UN Sustainable Development Goals
GRI indicators
The GRI comprises over 80 indicators for economic, social and environmental performance, with certain core indicators that must be reported on unless they are considered to be of limited importance to the company.
GRI is a set of general reporting indicators used by a number of industries, with many of the indicators being of particular relevance to larger companies. For example, Argentum does not have production activities or own buildings, but operates as an asset manager. The company has therefore decided to report on a selection of GRI indicators that are relevant to the company and its activities.
Below is an overview of the parameters Argentum reports on in connection with GRI.
| Indicator | Status 2023 | Status 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| Recycling (paper and IT) | 32% | 43 % |
| Business travel, CO2 equivalents | 40,0 tonnes | 64,0 tonnes |
| Business travel, CO2 equivalents (per FTE) | 1,57 tonnes | 2,44 tonnes |
| Sickness absence | 2,32% | 1,54% |
| Percentage of Women | 33,3% | 32,0 % |
| Skills development (per employee) | 7,33 hours | 11,13 hours |
Environmental indicators
Argentum's business operations involve travelling. In 2023, emissions from this amounted to 40 tons of CO2 equivalents, whereas the corresponding figure for 2022 was 64 tons of CO2 equivalents. This represents a significant decrease compared to the previous year. The reduction also contributes to a decrease in emissions per employee, which has dropped from 2.44 tons per full-time equivalent in 2022 to 1.57 tons per full-time equivalent in 2023.
The reason for the reduced emissions is that travel activity in 2023 was lower than in a normal year, partly due to a lower number of employees. Argentum has previously estimated that emissions over time will be around 60 tons per year and expects that emissions will increase somewhat in 2024. Argentum is committed to not traveling more than necessary to carry out the company's activities, and we extensively use the company's video conferencing equipment for both internal and external meetings.
Argentum has an agreement with an external party for the reuse of obsolete IT equipment and places environmental certification requirements on our suppliers. Argentum has established environmental measures that include paper recycling, as well as the sorting of food waste and plastic waste. The total recycling rate in 2023 was 30 percent, slightly lower than in 2022 when the recycling rate was 43 percent. The numbers are not directly comparable, as the figures for previous years only considered paper recycling. Argentum expects the percentage to increase in the future in line with increased use of the new sorting solutions.
Carbon Account
For the first time in 2023, Argentum has prepared a dedicated carbon account for the company's operations. Scope 1 emissions are associated with heating oil for the company's premises and amounted to 0.39 tons of CO2 equivalents in 2023. The company's Scope 2 emissions come from energy use and amounted to 6.25 tons of CO2 equivalents the same year. The GRI indicators for recycling and waste are included in the company's Scope 3 emissions. In total, 40.8 tons of emissions are linked to these indicators, accounting for 86 percent of the company's total emissions.
| Summary of Greenhouse Gas Emissions (location based) (tCO2e) | |
|---|---|
| Scope 1 | 0,39 |
| Scope 2 | 6,25 |
| Scope 3 | 40,80 |
| TOTAL | 47,45 |
Social indicators
Argentum had 27 employees at the end of 2023, compared with 25 employees at the start of the year. The number of full-time equivalents in 2023 was 25,51, which is used in average calculations in this report unless stated otherwise. Sickness absence accounted for 2,32 percent of total working hours in 2023, a slight increase compared with sickness absence in 2022 when it amounted to 1,53 percent.
Argentum strives for gender equality, and the proportion of women remained stable in 2023, with the company having a female representation of 33.3 percent, compared to 32.0 percent in 2022. In a small organization like Argentum, hiring and departures will result in significant changes in percentages. The proportion of women on the board is 40 percent, while there are no women in the company's management team, which consists of only two people. The proportion of women in the company's investment departments was 10 percent at the end of the year.
Diversity and a good working environment are important for Argentum, and the company is committed to reflecting this internally. This includes equal opportunities for all employees. The company is aware that the industry is traditionally male-heavy. The lack of gender equality in the industry poses a business risk, and Argentum considers an equal and diverse working environment as a means to reduce this risk. Therefore, Argentum uses both genders in its promotional materials and recruitment efforts for new employees. The company has flexible arrangements that make it easier to balance career and private life. Argentum continuously works to promote gender equality and strengthen its efforts in this area and is involved in several initiatives aimed at increasing women's interest in finance, investments, and entrepreneurship. Additionally, Argentum has signed the UN CEO Statement of Support for the Women's Empowerment Principles to promote global efforts related to gender equality.
Skill development/training per employee averaged 7.33 hours in 2023, compared with 11.13 hours in 2022. Recruitment to the company will impact the level of training and skill development. Argentum will continue to focus on developing employees' competence in the future.
Raising awareness and positioning
New this year is that the report summarizing Argentum's work on ESG and sustainability will no longer be published as a separate report, but will be part of the company's annual report. With this change, Argentum is moving towards "integrated reporting" and looks forward to further developing this reporting format in future annual reports. An annual meeting specifically related to sustainability work is held with the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries. Argentum's reports and guidelines are available on our website.
As a member of the UN Global Compact, Argentum reports on its work related to ESG and sustainability. Argentum completed its eleventh report in 2023, which is available on the Global Compact organization's website. Argentum has followed the principles of the UN PRI for several years and signed the principles in 2021. We completed our first UN PRI reporting in 2023. The report is available in the UN PRI database.
Argentum collaborates extensively with Norwegian and international actors to develop ESG work within the industry. The company participated in the Private Equity International Responsible Investment forum and the GSG Global Impact Summit Malaga in 2023 and has attended several conferences and seminars related to ESG and sustainability throughout the year. The company participated in the Shub Summit 2023, organized by Sustainability HUB, with which Argentum has a cooperation agreement. The company also took part in a panel discussion during the British industry association BVCA's ESG conference in London and was represented on stage at ESG100 in Oslo. Representatives from Argentum have also given presentations to other external actors about their sustainability work in 2023.
Argentum participated in a discussion about sustainability outside the stock exchange during the ESG100 event, represented by Manager Jon Fredrik Vassengen, together with Lars Grinde from Norvestor.
Throughout the year, we maintained extensive contact with students about ESG and sustainability. We participated as a case company for NHH students in the course "Sustainable Finance," where they interviewed us and created a project with recommendations on how we could improve. In 2023, we continued to focus on how we can attract more women to the finance industry, being the main sponsor for the NHH initiative SHE Innovates, as well as participants at Women's Finance Day, where we also hosted a workshop for female students. Argentum also gave lectures on topics including ESG to a delegation of master's students from Dartmouth, USA.
Argentum is a member of Norsif, the Norwegian forum for responsible and sustainable investments. Norsif is an independent association for asset owners and asset managers, service providers, and industry organizations interested in responsible and sustainable management. Argentum has been active in the organization since its inception.
In 2023, Argentum became a member of NorNab, an independent membership-based association that works for the growth and development of the impact investment ecosystem in Norway. It is an important network for Argentum to participate in for maintaining presence and developing expertise.
The Head of ESG, Sofie Østergaard, brought her membership in the Bergen-based sustainability network to PwC to Argentum. It consists of a group of professionals from other companies in the region who specialize in ESG. The network holds about six meetings a year. In 2023, Argentum presented its ESG strategy and how the company monitors ESG in its portfolio to this network.
Dagens Næringsliv has also established a "by invitation only" network for leading individuals in Norway working with ESG. The network, DN Executive Sustainability, started in March 2023 and has had five meetings in total in 2023. Topics discussed during the meetings included the Transparency Act, integration of ESG in companies, ESG reporting, and value chain mapping.
Argentum has regular dialogue with investors, managers and other stakeholders in connection with the ESG work and has assisted with their work on developing their ESG processes and routines. Argentum will continue its dialogue with Norwegian and international investors in connection with ESG and sustainability work in 2024.