Betsson handed highest possible ESG rating by Morgan Stanley Capital International 

Betsson AB has been awarded an AAA rating by the Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) ESG Ratings, the highest possible ranking awarded by the firm.

This latest rating represents an improvement on last year, when the operator was awarded an AA. 

MSCI explained how the AAA rating was a testament to Betsson’s “dedicated efforts in environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices”.

Pontus Lindwall, Betsson AB CEO, echoed a similar sentiment, before adding that the group was always aiming to go one step further.

He said: “Receiving the highest ESG rating from MSCI is a testament to Betsson’s dedication to ethical business practices, responsible gaming and sustainability. 

“These are constant efforts that span across the entire business as we are continuously striving to improve.” 

MSCI ESG rankings are broken down into three main categories: laggard, average and leader. 

There are seven different sub-sections in the form of CCC and B, which both fall under laggard, all of BB, BBB and A are deemed average, while AA and AAA are viewed as leader territory.

Those companies that come under the laggard category are viewed as lagging in respective industries, with the ruling based on both high exposure and failure to “manage significant ESG risks”.

Any company deemed average is one with a “mixed or unexceptional track record” when dealing with major ESG risks in comparison to its industry peers.

A leader, the category that Betsson finds itself in, is a company that spearheads its industry when dealing with the most significant ESG issues and opportunities.

How a company falls into any of those three categories is measured by how prepared it is in relation to long-term ESG risks. 

MSCI forms its final rating for each company by using more than 1,000 data points alongside 80 business segment and geographic exposure metrics.

It has analysed the ESG performance of 8,500 companies since it began the practice in 1999. 

In October 2023, Jonna Danlund, Betsson’s head of sustainability, spoke exclusively to EGR on the topic of ESG and revealed how vital responsible gaming is to the group’s efforts.

“Responsible gaming is the core of our ESG efforts, and I think anyone would agree that it is also the most important sustainability area for the igaming industry,” Danlund explained.

“At Betsson, we want to be the inspiration for a healthy approach to gaming, and our KPIs therefore focus on raising awareness and increasing knowledge about responsible gaming and, most importantly, on always having our customers at heart, helping them to play responsibly.

“That being said, all of the areas within ESG are important.”

It has been a strong start to July for Betsson, with the AAA rating coming less than a fortnight after the operator secured a four-year front-of-shirt sponsorship deal with Italian football champions Inter Milan.

The deal is the largest in the club’s history and the front of their shirts will feature the branding of Betsson’s infotainment platform, Betsson.sport. 

This is due to Italy’s advertising laws preventing pure gambling sponsorships, so the Stockholm-based group has deployed its news portal subsidiary to circumvent the regulations.

Betsson Group CEO Jesper Svensson told EGR last week that the deal reaffirmed the brand’s commitment to Italy, having launched the flagship Betsson brand in the market earlier this year.

He said: “We look at the markets we have an ambition in. We were looking at Italy more than any other market. Italy is one of our key markets.

“We recently launched Betsson in Italy. So, we have a long history in the Italian market from the casino side with StarCasinò.”