Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust sustainability score: 26/100

·Financial Services / Banking·Last verified 30 August 2026
26
out of 100
Significant gapsPending ReviewMixed evidence· 8 src

Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust scores 26/100 (Significant gaps) on SINK's independent climate assessment — scored from public data only, no company payment can change a number. Last verified August 2026.

That places Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust joint 551st of 658 companies scored, and joint 41st of 46 in Financial Services / Banking.

Scottish Mortgage is a listed investment trust with negligible operational footprint but material financed emissions exposure through ~100 portfolio companies. It publishes partial portfolio-level climate data via TCFD but has no entity-specific emissions targets. Its manager withdrew from net-zero initiatives in 2024, and the Trust explicitly states ESG is secondary to returns.

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This score is built from public data only. If your practice is stronger than your disclosure, submit evidence for review — or challenge any question, free.

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The calculation

How is Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust's SINK score calculated?

Same formula for every company. No curve. No private weighting.

SINK = (0.3 × Base + 0.7 × Performance) × Scale
Industry base impact
Financial Services / Banking sector ceiling.
50 / 100
Performance score
Sum of the 10 rubric questions, scored 0–10 each.
31 / 100
Raw score
Weighted average before scale penalty.
(0.3 × 50) + (0.7 × 31) = 36.7
Scale penalty
Multiplier based on absolute emissions volume — physics-first.
× 0.7
Final score
Rounded. Significant gaps.
26 / 100
The ten questions

What is Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust doing well, and where does it fall short?

Strongest on Controversies & Red Flags and Water Impact (5/10, 4/10). Weakest on Targets & Commitments and Emissions Trajectory (2/10, 2/10).

Where the evidence comes from

What evidence is Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust's score based on?

8 sources used in this assessment. All publicly available. Each row shows which rubric questions it informed.

[1]Third-party verified
AIC ESG Company Data — Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust

the Company being an externally-managed investment company with no employees

Ongoing
Q1Q4Q5Q6Q9Q10
View →
[2]Public record
Companies House — Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust (SC007058)

SCOTTISH MORTGAGE INVESTMENT TRUST PLC - Free company information from Companies House

Ongoing
Q1
View →
[3]Self-reported
Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust TCFD Climate Report

Material scope 3 emissions are very likely to be higher for the 2023 reporting

2024
Q2Q3Q4Q7Q9
View →
[4]Third-party verified
Hargreaves Lansdown — Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust Research Update

Baillie Gifford courted controversy in 2024 when it left the Net Zero Asset Managers' Initiative

2025
Q3Q10
View →
[5]Public record
Investment Week — Baillie Gifford Withdraws Climate Action 100+ and NZAM

Baillie Gifford has left the Climate Action 100+ group and Net Zero Asset Managers initiative

2024
Q8Q10
View →
[6]Third-party verified
Brunel Pension Partnership — Biodiversity & Nature

Baillie Gifford are integrating their screening tool into their firmwide Climate Audit tool

Ongoing
Q5
View →
[7]Self-reported
Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust Annual Report 2025

This strategic report, which includes pages 4 to 56, has been prepared in accordance with the Companies Act 2006

2025
Q6
View →
[8]Public record
Portfolio Adviser — NZAM Relaunch and Asset Manager Commitments

Baillie Gifford, which left NZAM in 2024... also has not rejoined

2026
Q8
View →

If you believe a source has been misread or a newer version exists, submit a challenge.

Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust in context

How does Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust compare with other financial services / banking companies?

Where Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust sits among financial services / banking peers.

Among the 46 major financial services / banking brands we've scored, Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust is tied =41st of 46, with 1 other.

=41/46
Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust's rank
38
Industry average
23
Industry low
65
Industry high
How this score has moved

Has Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust's score changed?

today

Score history begins .

As Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust's score updates, the trajectory will appear here.

We're backfilling historical scores for FTSE 100 and S&P 100 companies over the coming weeks.

What's being contested

Has Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust's score been challenged?

This score is not currently being contested.

Every challenge is published. We'd rather be corrected than wrong — that's the whole point.

No challenges submitted yet. If you have evidence that contradicts this score, you can challenge any question above — cite a public source and we'll review it.

About Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust

Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust is a UK-listed closed-end investment company founded in 1909 and headquartered in Edinburgh. It manages a globally diversified portfolio of ~100 public and private growth companies across technology, healthcare, and consumer sectors. The Trust is externally managed by Baillie Gifford and has no employees or direct operations.

Founded
Headquarters
United Kingdom
Employees
~0 (externally managed; no direct employees)
Annual revenue
~£14–15B AUM (investment trust, not a revenue-generating company in the conventional sense)
Company website ↗
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