Index and analytics provider Qontigo announced today that the DAX 50 ESG Index has been selected as the benchmark for a fund managed by Stuttgart, Germany-based Württembergische Lebensversicherung AG. The announcement marks the first time the recently created index will serve as the benchmark for an actively managed fund.

The DAX 50 ESG tracks the performance of the 50 largest, most liquid German market stocks that have comparably good performance based on their ESG criteria. The index utilizes two complementary approaches to incorporate ESG principles into the selection criteria, including negative screens for companies that are involved in controversial or unsustainable activities, and positive screens based on ESG scores.

Since Qontigo introduced the index in April 2020, various securities have launched that track and monitor the index, including an ETF managed by Lyxor Asset Management, or certificates issued by Austria’s Raiffeisen Centrobank. Earlier this month, Qontigo parent Deutsche Börse Group’s derivatives exchange Eurex announced the launch of a new series of futures and options on the index.

Stephan Flaegel, Global Head of Indices and Benchmarks at Qontigo, said:

“We are observing a continuous trend towards sustainable investing, and the DAX 50 ESG is the ideal index to be used as the ESG flagship benchmark for the German equity market.”