StepStone Group, Antler and Carthona Capital First to Join Limited Pilot Program
Sydney, Australia – June 21, 2022 – Pathzero, a SaaS-based company specialising in the management of financed emissions in private markets investment portfolios, announced today the introduction of Pathzero Navigator, a data-driven portfolio alignment tool designed to provide private investors with an initial PCAF-compliant estimate of their financed emissions. This innovative tool is designed to help investment firms prepare for coming regulatory requirements and align their portfolios and activities with the goals of the Paris Agreement. Private investment firms StepStone Group, Antler and Carthona Capital are the first to test the tool through a limited pilot program Pathzero has opened to select investment firms.
“Private markets are opaque, and investors have traditionally been reliant on ESG ratings and proxy data to understand the carbon profile of portfolios. With the public demand for accurate information and the emergence of standardized methodologies for measuring and reporting such as GHG Protocol, TCFD and PCAF, we recognized the investment managers’ need for greater accuracy and visibility into their portfolios,” said Carl Prins, Co-Founder and CEO at Pathzero. “Pathzero Navigator is specifically designed to cater to asset managers regardless of where they are on their climate journey, providing an easy ‘on-ramp’ for taking a risk-based approach to addressing the climate related financial risk in their portfolios.”
Once key data about the companies in a portfolio has been uploaded, Pathzero Navigator provides an instant assessment of the total emissions and the attributable financed emissions in the portfolio. Further analysis is then enabled to identify climate risk 'hot spots' that will naturally focus attention to the sectors, companies or emission sources that matter most within the portfolio. The tool complements Pathzero’s broader offering, a SaaS platform that enables any company to measure, manage and communicate their carbon emissions information with expert consultants available to provide advice along the way.
“Climate change is a giant risk and opportunity facing most businesses globally, and private markets are really well positioned to address this challenge, but the key is getting the data we need to be able to assemble a carbon footprint,” says Suzanne Tavill, Partner and Head of Responsible Investment at StepStone Group. “Pathzero helped us conduct a comprehensive measurement and analysis which has been instrumental in enabling StepStone to become carbon neutral for our organizational emissions in 2021. The next step for StepStone will be to address Scope 3 Category 15 emissions by applying these same tools and approach to our portfolio companies.”
“The first steps to climate action are building awareness and then measurement. We are excited to work with Pathzero to show that VC firms, regardless of size, investment approach and global footprint, can do this in an efficient and effective manner. We hope this will encourage others in the industry to do the same,” says Rosalind Bazany, Head of ESG and impact at Antler. She adds “Pathzero formed their company in our Antler Australia programme and we are delighted to continue to support the important work they are doing.”
Pathzero is inviting a limited number of financial firms to also join the pilot which uses Pathzero Navigator to provide an initial estimate of their financed emissions. StepStone Group, along with venture firms Antler and Carthona Capital are among the first firms to test Pathzero Navigator as part of the pilot program underway. Asset managers interested in participating should request an invitation via https://www.pathzero.com/pilot-program.
About Pathzero
The Pathzero platform enables both the collection and communication of carbon data, so users can generate insights, and take action, to get to net zero emissions. The company’s intuitive technology offers seamless data networking between trusted parties. It gives investment managers complete oversight of their financed emissions, and empowers individual companies to measure and reduce their GHG profile. Pathzero is committed to building the tools companies need to adapt to a low-carbon future.