The Sylvan Group

MAIL: james.oh@thesylvangroup.com

Approach

Strategy & Policy

Investment Strategy

Sylvan’s investment strategy is focusing on growth buyout of mid-market companies aligned to UN SDGs. We have a belief that “Achieving upper quartile financial returns while creating meaningful impacts in a challenging environment is possible if highly capable investors support both business and ESG/impact (“ESGI”).

We focus on companies
with ESGI potential and intentions

At Sylvan, ESG goes beyond simple regulations and trends that companies follow.
It is a value that all corporations must reflect for the sustainable development of mankind.
However, unlike larger corporations that have the capabilities to deal with the rapidly changing environments, SMEs in Southeast

Asia, which make up our target portfolio, are unable to implement ESG operations due to a lack of knowledge and capabilities.

Therefore, we focus on companies with ‘ESGI potential and intentions’, who can create greater impact through ESGI transformation with our support, rather than sorting out target companies with strict ESG and impact criteria.
In addition, we are highly involved with the business and operations of portfolio companies that show growth and impact potential to contribute to the realization of the potential.

Kyungsun Chung’s Bloomberg Interview

01
: Commercial
Value

02
: Growth
Support

03
: Sustainability
Value

Investment Theme

Sylvan operates multi-country and multi-industry funds with three investment themes.
Sylvan’s three Investment themes are defined by the changes in the Earth’s climate and the socio-economic status of the world.
The themes are also aligned with the UN’s SDGs and Sylvan’s ESG Materiality Issues.

Innovation for Sustainable Life

While the Industrial Revolution resulted in the invention of the steam engine that advanced mankind, it also created a structure of massive waste of resources to maintain human civilization. This is why Sylvan invests in innovative technologies for all aspects of human life such as but not limited to, housing, food production, logistics, transportation, and medicine that will use fewer resources, be accessible and inclusive at a fundamental level.

# Increasing technology connectivity, Digital transformation, Sustainability infrastructure
Sub category : smart green city / innovative agri food tech / energy tech

Inclusive Society

Climate change, extremism, and international instability threaten the most vulnerable demographics first, exacerbating the conditions for an unstable society.This is why the Sylvan Group focuses on investments in affordable and accessible healthcare, education systems, and inclusive financial infrastructure to ensure that all human beings can live with dignity.

# Demographic shift, Poverty, Inequality, Cultural & digital gap, Aging population
Sub category : access to quality healthcare / inclusive finance / innovative education / disruptive education pedagogies

Climate action

One of mankind’s biggest challenges in today’s world is the climate crisis. It causes food shortages, damage to food supply chains, natural disasters, and even health issues.With all this in mind, the Sylvan group invests in a variety of solutions, ranging from energy innovations that minimize greenhouse gas emissions, to resource efficiency solutions, adapting to hostile environments in this era of climate change.

# Global warming, Energy transition, Resources scarcity
Sub category : Climate resilience / Clean water / Waste management / Renewable energy

Sylvan’s ESG Material Issue

We not only aim for environmental and social issues but also ethical management, transparent accounting, and management governance within Sylvan as well as the companies within our portfolio.
To do so, we comply with existing global standards such as SASB, MSCI to identify and assess the portfolio companies’ industry-specific materiality issues.

Environment

GHG Emissions
Product Carbon Footprint
Climate Change Vulnerability
Water Stress
Pollution and Waste Management
Biodiversity & Land Use
Materials Sourcing & Efficiency
Environmental Opportunities (Renewable Energy, Clean Tech, and etc.)

Social

Human Rights
Human Capital Development
Health & Safety
Supply Chain Management
Community Relations
Customer Welfare
Product Safety & Quality
Privacy & Data Security
Responsible Investment
Social Opportunities(Access to Healthcare, Access to Finance, and etc.)

Governance

Business Ethics
Corporate Governance & Leadership
Risk Management
Accounting

Sustainable Investing policy

Our investment philosophy is based on UN SDGs and PRI, pursuing environmental and social characteristics in investments.
Sylvan’s sustainable investment policy is attached in the link below.

Sylvan ESG & impact policy

Sylvan SFDR Statement

ESGI Governance

Sustainable investment practices are integrated into Sylvan’s investment process, supported by our ESGI governance.

Sylvan’s ‘ESGI committee’ and internal ‘Sylvan Sustainability Group’ are our source of competitive advatages that have enabled this firm to distinguish itself from others and bring the core competencies in ESGI principles and practices.

ESGI committee

Sylvan’s ESGI committee members and their major roles include: ESGI Commissioner, Head of investment group, ESGI director, and MDs as part of the execution team. With the Impact Commissioner as a chairman, the leadership group oversees Sylvan’s ESGI system, setting the strategy and actionable directions for the ESGI principles and practices. The group is also responsible for ESGI policy updates and execution of Sylvan’s internal ESG operations. The execution team is mainly responsible for ESGI investment implementation and monitoring on the field.

Sylvan Sustainability Lab

Sylvan Sustainability Lab is our core competency regarding ESGI related expertise at Sylvan.
The lab consists of young professionals with 10 years of ESG consulting and Impact business experiences from global top-tier strategy consulting firms. Being responsible for ESGI due diligence, ESGI management and monitoring on the portfolio companies, internal and external ESGI communication as well as education and training, this team is heavily involved with the investment team, portfolio companies as well as external stakeholders.