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EDHEC-Risk Institute set up ERI Scientific Beta in December 2012 as part of its policy of transferring know-how to the industry. ERI Scientific Beta is an original initiative which aims to favour the adoption of the latest advances in “smart beta” design and implementation by the whole investment industry. Its academic origin provides the foundation for its strategy: offer, in the best economic conditions possible, the smart beta solutions that are most proven scientifically with full transparency of both the methods and the associated risks. Smart beta is an approach that deviates from the default solution for indexing or benchmarking of using market capitalisation as the sole criterion for weighting and constituent selection.

EDHEC-Risk Institute considers that new forms of indices represent a major opportunity to put into practice the results of the considerable research efforts conducted over the last 30 years on portfolio construction. Although these new benchmarks may constitute better investment references than poorly-diversified cap-weighted indices, they nevertheless expose investors to new systematic and specific risk factors related to the portfolio construction model selected. 

Consistent with a full control of the risks of investment in smart beta benchmarks, ERI Scientific Beta not only provides exhaustive information on the construction methods of these new benchmarks but also enables investors to conduct the most advanced analyses of the risks of the indices in the best possible economic conditions. 

ERI Scientific Beta provides the opportunity for investors not only to measure the risks of smart beta indices, but also to choose and manage them. This new aspect in the construction of smart beta indices has led ERI Scientific Beta to build the most extensive smart beta benchmarks platform available.

Key Features and Coverage on RIMES

For this data source, RIMES hosts approximately 120 indices (including currencies), such as:

• SciBeta Developed
• SciBeta Eurozone 
• SciBeta Japan 
• SciBeta United Kingdom 
• SciBeta United States 

Some of the data items available include: Net Index, Price Index, Gross Index, and Number of Indices.