<description>&lt;p&gt;After the Trump administration revoked the 2009 Endangerment Finding that underpinned federal actions curbing greenhouse gases in February 2026, there is a sense that we are reaching a peak of anti-ESG sentiment.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;However, Professor Michel Driessen, director of Bayes Business School’s M&amp;amp;A Research Centre and chair of Queen’s Tower Advisory, argues environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues should be treated as a substantial business risk – and ignored at business owners’ peril.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;ESG policies are more than just the “E”, though the term has become highly politicized, with a heavy focus on the environmental aspects.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Companies have gone from greenwashing a few years ago to “green hiding” today, making it difficult for investors to assess the financial value of ESG measures that are going underreported.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;At a time when anti-ESG sentiment feels rampant, Driessen, co-author of Green Gold: How Sustainability Creates Deal Value, joins Mergermarket’s global executive editor Lucinda Guthrie to discuss the importance of these measures in M&amp;amp;A.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode of Dealcast, the guests explore questions including: When will anti-ESG sentiment start to cool? How can AI support ESG reporting? And why are the palm oil industry and Boohoo such a good case studies for the complexities of ESG beyond just environmental standards?&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Green Gold: How Sustainability Creates Deal Value will be available from 26 February. &lt;/p&gt;</description>

Dealcast: The M&A Podcast

ION Analytics

Why ESG still drives returns in a ‘peak anti‑ESG’ era – Bayes Business School’s Prof. Michel Driessen, with Lucinda Guthrie

FEB 18, 202632 MIN
Dealcast: The M&A Podcast

Why ESG still drives returns in a ‘peak anti‑ESG’ era – Bayes Business School’s Prof. Michel Driessen, with Lucinda Guthrie

FEB 18, 202632 MIN

Description

After the Trump administration revoked the 2009 Endangerment Finding that underpinned federal actions curbing greenhouse gases in February 2026, there is a sense that we are reaching a peak of anti-ESG sentiment.However, Professor Michel Driessen, director of Bayes Business School’s M&A Research Centre and chair of Queen’s Tower Advisory, argues environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues should be treated as a substantial business risk – and ignored at business owners’ peril.ESG policies are more than just the “E”, though the term has become highly politicized, with a heavy focus on the environmental aspects.Companies have gone from greenwashing a few years ago to “green hiding” today, making it difficult for investors to assess the financial value of ESG measures that are going underreported.At a time when anti-ESG sentiment feels rampant, Driessen, co-author of Green Gold: How Sustainability Creates Deal Value, joins Mergermarket’s global executive editor Lucinda Guthrie to discuss the importance of these measures in M&A.In this episode of Dealcast, the guests explore questions including: When will anti-ESG sentiment start to cool? How can AI support ESG reporting? And why are the palm oil industry and Boohoo such a good case studies for the complexities of ESG beyond just environmental standards?Green Gold: How Sustainability Creates Deal Value will be available from 26 February.