Money is power, and the insurance industry is one of the largest global industries by revenue, topping 6tn USD annually.
“Through loss prevention and mitigation, by sharing risks over many shoulders, and as major investors, the insurance industry has protected society, shaped markets and underpinned economic development”
Achim Steiner, United Nations Environment Programme
As we take a look around the risk landscape in 2022, never before has the insurance industry’s function been more important.
How does the insurance industry exercise its powers?
- Risk capital deployment – the insurance industry disburses billions each year into communities via claims payments e.g. 11bn AUD Brisbane floods 2011
- Investment capital placement – outside of premium payments, the insurance industry earns the majority of its income from investments that sustain balance sheets for claims payments.
By default, through claims payment activities, the insurance industry demands ESG credentials, though the industry has much scope to leverage its position to create new ESG value.
Earlier this year Insurtech Gateway Australia in partnership with Insurtech Australia held an ESG focussed event to learn more about how Insurtech can help drive change by utilising ESG practices. More on that here.
At this event Binuo Erth spoke as an investment manager and ESG activist who is dedicating her focus to work closely with investors, projects and businesses to assess, plan, measure and validate what they do via an ESG framework.
Through our close working relationship that has developed, we have invited Binuo to join our mentoring team at Insurtech Gateway Australia. She joins a strong team that supports and advises the next generation of Australian Insurtech founders, who share our vision of creating revolutionary insurance products and services.
Binuo is the Managing Director of Vellum. As a female-owned business with an all-female advisory board, Binuo is an asset management pioneer with extensive experience in designing, integrating, and improving all aspects of responsible investment and practices for corporations, SMEs and non-for-profit organisations.
“Many more businesses are embracing ESG principles to positively impact the financial, environmental, and social performance of their company. Measures could traditionally include how many environmentally sustainable projects they back that reduce carbon emissions or how great is the gender balance among their board or senior staff.
Binuo Erth
Recently the focus on ESG has grown, but many find sustainable investment confusing and unconvincing. Vellum has built innovative ESG management tools, constructed a non-financial value recognition system, and contributed greatly to ESG performance management to solve these issues.”
Binuo is passionate about driving ESG success that is combined with financial success. She seeks to positively impact the responsible investment and practices of investors, corporations, SMEs and non-for-profit organisations. Most recently she led the development of the Vellum ESG framework that creates metrics and tools to evaluate environmental value and social value beyond climate initiatives and gender balance. This is used to help businesses of all sizes execute on meaningful environmental and social goals.
“I want other businesses to embrace ESG success that is combined with financial success. I want to see more responsible investment and practices of investors, corporations, SMEs and non-for-profit organisations”
Binuo Erth
Get in touch
Insurtech Gateway Australia is focussed on leading the way with ESG measurement and reporting in the Insurtech sector. If you have founded a pre-seed or seed insurtech and are looking for support and funding – or maybe you just have an idea that you would like to chat through – we have the experience and the tools to help you get to market faster. Check out our incubator and venture fund or get in touch.