The Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) published its first annual Sustainability Report, detailing the company’s strategy, partnerships, and initiatives in the field of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) reporting and implementation for the year 2021. The Report also represents the company's commitment to disclosing the latest results and effects of its Corporate Sustainability strategy and enhancing its operational sustainability, as part of its efforts to implement ESG best practices and standards as well as improve disclosures and transparency.

TASE views the report as a significant milestone in the advancement of ESG commitments, which has taken center stage in Israel and globally in recent years, both among the TASE-listed companies and as a public company itself.

Commenting on the announcement, Ittai Ben Zeev, CEO of TASE, said: “We are proud to publish today TASE's first ESG report and share with the public our social and environmental vision and actions. The important values fulfilled by the advancement of ESG are also accompanied by significant economic value and a real contribution to the ability of each and every one of us to ensure sustainable growth, protect the environment and create a more equal and fair society. The importance of ESG is also growing among investors, institutional and retail, especially the foreign investors, who are showing a growing interest in the Israeli stock market. Regrettably, Israel is still behind compared to the world and we hope to see a growing number of companies adopt high ESG standards. TASE, on its part, will continue to develop this field, create related products and improve the accessibility of information for the benefit of all public companies and the investors."

In the report, which summarizes TASE's ESG activity in 2021, TASE specifies its goals and commitment to various economic, corporate governance, social and environmental aspects and maps the 13 most material topics within and outside the organization as a strategic foundation for the Company's ESG activity. In addition, TASE defines in the report the UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that are most relevant to its activity: gender equality, fair employment and economic growth, industry, innovation and infrastructure, reduction of inequality, and responsible consumption and production.

Advancement of ESG

TASE is working on multiple levels to develop and strengthen ESG practices in Israel, among others, by launching new products, courses and training. TASE has launched 3 ESG indices in recent years: TA-125 Fossil Free, Cleantech, and the veteran Maala Index. 12 tracking products were launched on these indices. In addition, 29 ETFs and tracking funds on global ESG indices are traded on TASE.

TASE is a partner of the UN Sustainable Stock Exchange (SSE) initiative, which works to encourage exchanges around the world to adopt and advance ESG standards. In 2021, TASE held its first ESG conference and is currently planning to open a new course that, for the first time, offers practical training for the use of ESG strategy in the management of investor relations. The course will be presented in cooperation with the Israeli Investor Relations Forum of the Israeli Association of Publicly Traded Companies and the Israeli Forum for Impact Economy.

Regarding sustainability reporting, a quarter of the 125 companies included in TASE's TA-125 flagship index issued ESG reports recently. To improve transparency and allow exposure to the companies that publish an ESG report, TASE aired on its website a dedicated page containing a list of 40 TASE-listed companies that published an ESG report, including a link to the relevant page on the company's website.

TASE has also published that more than half of its employees (52% of 258 employees) are women. Women hold 42% of executive positions. The Exchange operates two programs for the integration of diverse populations: a project that integrates employees with autism and a project that integrates youths that dropped out of the school system. The purpose of the projects is to provide the participants with tools and skills that will help them gain employment. In addition, TASE has invested in close to 1,700 training hours for employees in 2021, including professional seminars, educational seminars, executive training and more.

More about the developments of The Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) in the sustainable development field visit: www.tase.co.il

SSE Stock Exchange Database

To learn more and see which other exchanges publish sustainability reports, visit the SSE’s database of stock exchange sustainability activities. Currently, the database has data on 116 stock exchanges and tracks progress on key activities where exchanges are promoting sustainable business and investment practices. It is the largest data set of its kind and the data is freely accessible.