Assurance provider acquires supply chain and ESG specialist
LRQA has acquired environmental, social and governance specialist (ESG) ELEVATE, in an effort to create transparency and assurance in ESG standards.
Digital assurance service LRQA is based in Birmingham and became a fully independent business owned by funds managed by Goldman Sachs Asset Management in December 2021.
The firm already performs environmental conformity assessments but the acquisition enables LRQA to enhance its portfolio particularly in markets such as assurance, inspection and cybersecurity.
With the combined expertise, the partnership aims to deliver sustainable supply chain assurance across industries such as food, retail, energy and manufacturing.
ELEVATE has designed and implemented an ESG service ecosystem that provides an end-to-end service from assessment, to advisory to management and analytics that will reflect the client’s risk profile and sourcing structure.
Paul Butcher, Chief Executive of LRQA, said: “The risk landscape is changing so fast and our clients need a partner that can help them adapt, particularly in ESG. This agreement is a major signal of our determination to meet that need.”
Ian Spaulding, CEO of ELEVATE
Ian Spaulding, who has led the growth of ELEVATE since its inception in 2013 will join the LRQA executive team.
Spaulding said: “Working with LRQA supports our progressive, data-driven vision about the critical role of ESG in supply chains. It extends our ESG service ecosystem, connects our world-class solutions in the “S” domain with LRQA’s “E” expertise, and expands our global reach and sector coverage.”
The Goldman Sachs Asset Management team led by Michael Bruun, Jose Barreto, and Mihir Lal, said: “The acquisition of ELEVATE enhances the breadth and depth of LRQA’s existing ESG, digital and supply chain quality assurance capabilities, and enables LRQA to better support clients to manage their sustainable growth paths in a changing risk environment.”
The transaction is expected to complete in 2022, following the receipt of regulatory approvals.
