The German benchmark index DAX® has a new, sustainable family member: the DAX® 50 ESG Index, which was launched today. This index takes environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria into account and highlights the 50 top companies regarding their ESG performance, market capitalisation and stock exchange turnover. It was created by Qontigo, the index and analytics business of Deutsche Börse Group.

“The demand for sustainable indices among investors has been growing for years. That is why we have decided to launch an ESG-DAX index, which meets the same high standards as its name sponsor,” said Stephan Flägel, Global Head of Indices & Benchmarks at Qontigo. “The index reflects ESG criteria to which institutional and private investors today are equally committed. We are convinced: DAX 50 ESG will be the standard for ESG investments in Germany.”

The starting point for the DAX 50 ESG Index is the HDAX which includes approximately 100 components (HDAX is made up of DAX, MDAX and TecDAX). In creating the index, norm-based exclusion criteria are applied in accordance with the UN Global Compact Principles, and also product involvement screening for controversial weapons, tobacco, coal, nuclear power and military contracts. The remaining stocks are ranked according to market capitalisation, stock exchange turnover and ESG scores calculated by Sustainalytics, a leading global provider of ESG research, ratings and data. From this list, the top 50 stocks are selected for the index. The index is reviewed every three months. DAX fast-exit and fast-entry rules apply including any sustainability breaches by the index constituents. 

“As part of our Group-wide commitment to Sustainable Finance, transparency and the availability of sustainability data play a crucial role. ESG aspects allow a more holistic and, above all, future-oriented assessment of a company’s value. This is because climate and environmental risks, social factors and aspects of corporate governance will play an essential role for the financial sector in risk assessment,” said Kristina Jeromin, Head of Group Sustainability at Deutsche Börse. “The real economy is facing a transformation process and it is the responsibility of the financial sector to finance it; indices such as the DAX 50 ESG provide an important basis for this.”

As a provider of market infrastructure, Deutsche Börse sees its fundamental responsibility in ensuring transparency in the capital markets and thereby promoting stability and the economic success of these markets. Providing sustainable products and services is just as important as conducting a constructive dialogue on the sustainable development of the international capital markets with customers and society as a whole. 
 

DAX®, MDAX®, TecDAX®, HDAX® and DAX® 50 ESG are registered trademarks of Qontigo GmbH.

About Deutsche Börse

Deutsche Börse Group is one of the largest exchange organisations worldwide. It organises markets characterised by integrity, transparency and safety for investors who invest capital and for companies that raise capital – markets on which professional traders buy and sell equities, derivatives and other financial instruments according to clear rules and under strict supervision. Deutsche Börse Group, with its services and systems, ensures the functioning of these markets and a level playing field for all participants – worldwide.

About Qontigo

Qontigo is a financial intelligence innovator and a leader in the modernization of investment management, from risk to return. The combination of the company’s world-class indices and best-of-breed analytics, with its technological expertise and customer-driven innovation enables its clients to achieve competitive advantage in a rapidly changing marketplace. Qontigo’s global client base includes the world’s largest financial products issuers, capital owners and asset managers. Created in 2019 through the combination of STOXX, DAX and Axioma, Qontigo is part of Deutsche Börse Group, headquartered in Eschborn with key locations in New York, Zug and London.

About STOXX

STOXX Ltd. is Qontigo’s global index provider, currently calculating a global, comprehensive index family of over 10,000 strictly rules-based and transparent indices. Best known for the leading European equity indices EURO STOXX 50, STOXX Europe 50 and STOXX Europe 600, STOXX Ltd. maintains and calculates the STOXX Global index family which consists of total market, broad and blue-chip indices for the regions Americas, Europe, Asia/Pacific and sub-regions Latin America and BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) as well as global markets. STOXX is the administrator of the STOXX® and DAX® indices under the European Benchmark Regulation and exercises control over all benchmark administration processes within Qontigo.
STOXX indices are licensed to more than 600 companies around the world as underlyings for Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs), futures and options, structured products and passively managed investment funds.

Legal disclaimer: 
STOXX, Qontigo GmbH, Qontigo Index GmbH, Deutsche Boerse Group and their licensors, research partners or data providers do not make any warranties or representations, express or implied, with respect to the timeliness, sequence, accuracy, completeness, currentness, merchantability, quality or fitness for any particular purpose of its index data and exclude any liability in connection therewith. STOXX, Qontigo GmbH, Qontigo Index GmbH, Deutsche Boerse Group and their licensors, research partners or data providers are not providing investment advice through the publication of indices or in connection therewith. In particular, the inclusion of a company in an index, its weighting, or the exclusion of a company from an index, does not in any way reflect an opinion of STOXX, Qontigo GmbH, Qontigo Index GmbH, Deutsche Boerse Group or their licensors, research partners or data providers on the merits of that company. Financial instruments based on the STOXX® indices, DAX® indices or on any other indices supported by STOXX are in no way sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by STOXX, Qontigo GmbH, Qontigo Index GmbH, Deutsche Boerse Group or their licensors, research partners or data providers.