Hi Peter, thanks for your perspective. A few comments:

- We agree that the lookback is relatively short, however, that is a general industry issue with ESG data. It's not only that ESG data is often only available for a few years, but that more and different data has become available recently, which means investors need to be careful with backtesting ESG data.
- Our analysis shows positive returns from backtesting ESG data as all four ESG categories generated positive excess returns from 2009 to 2018, so it is in line with most other research that was published. Our research simply shows that the returns can be explained by other factors, which again is in line with the consensus.
- However, it is worth highlighting that a large amount of research is published by ESG data providers and asset managers selling ESG products, which is not conflict-free and needs to be reviewed carefully.
- The research note you referenced in your second comment benchmarks realized returns from ESG-focused ETFs in the US since 2005 and shows a slight underperformance. Unfortunate for investors, as usual, there is a difference between theory (backtesting) and reality.
- I'm not biased against a stakeholder approach and believe it's great that investors are nudging companies to become better citizens. However, there seem to be very few free lunches in finance and the data doesn't support that ESG is one.

Best regards, Nicolas