Bermudian-founded Apex Group Ltd has launched a tool to help financial market participants collect the necessary data to report on and comply with the upcoming EU Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation.

As of March, the EU SFDR will require asset managers to incorporate sustainability risks across their investment process, product governance and wider internal processes and systems.

Apex, a global financial services provider, said that despite this imminent legislation, many managers lack an understanding of its implications for their business and require urgent support if they are to comply with the reporting demands.

It said Invest Check is underpinned by Apex’s proprietary software and “simplifies the process of regulatory alignment through robust data collection, benchmarked against best-in-class international regulations and standards defined by EU SFDR, TCFD, UNPRI and more”.

Invest Check evaluates an asset manager’s sustainability strategy at manager and product level, tracks performance and identifies key gaps against an ESG [environmental, social and corporate governance] data set based on regulatory standards. Apex said the data is then presented in an easy to use format that mirrors the SFDR template.

Beyond supporting regulatory ESG reporting requirements, Invest Check allows asset managers to identify, understand and act on key gaps “to support a company’s journey towards ESG best practice and to stay ahead of upcoming regulatory or disclosure requirements”.

Andy Pitts-Tucker, managing director of Apex ESG ratings and advisory, said: “The regulatory imperative to monitor, disclose and improve ESG data is already a reality for many, with the EU SFDR legislation looming large. We are excited to launch Invest Check and see it as a potential catalyst for behavioural change in the investment process by delivering ESG data in an efficient and useable format for asset managers.”