Paris, France – November 12, 2025 – SESAMm, a leader in AI-powered text analysis for financial services, proudly announces its inclusion in the ESGFinTech100 list by FinTech Global for the third consecutive year. This recognition highlights SESAMm's commitment to sustainability and ESG through the application of advanced AI technologies.

FinTech Global's annual ESGFinTech100 list, now in its fourth year, showcases the top 100 ESG companies that are revolutionizing the financial services industry. The list is carefully curated by a panel of industry experts who evaluate over 500 ESG tech companies worldwide. This year’s criteria focused on innovative technology solutions addressing a significant industry challenge, as well as their contributions to ESG imperatives and sustainability improvements for clients.

"We’re proud to be recognized again among the ESGFinTech100, alongside innovators redefining the role of technology in sustainable finance. At SESAMm, we believe the future of ESG lies in intelligence that’s both real-time and actionable. Our mission is to make external data speak — transforming how investors, corporations, and financial institutions understand risk and opportunity.” Said Sylvain Forté, SESAMm’s CEO. “Looking ahead, we’re building on this foundation with SESAMm’s own AI-powered agents, automating entire workflows from risk detection to report generation. These systems make ESG intelligence seamless, embedded, and action-ready."

The inclusion of SESAMm in this year's ESGFinTech100 underscores the rising significance of ESG factors in the financial sector. As institutions increasingly focus on sustainability, SESAMm leverages AI to enhance operational efficiencies while supporting ESG initiatives.

About SESAMm

SESAMm is a global leader in controversy data, leveraging advanced large language models and generative AI to uncover ESG, reputational, and supplier risks in seconds. Our AI-powered platform surfaces real-time insights, even in low-disclosure markets, on millions of companies and infrastructure projects, supporting more informed decisions, enhanced due diligence, and regulatory alignment at scale. We work with leading firms, including Carlyle, Warburg, Natixis, RBI, Sustainable Fitch, Oddo, and others. SESAMm has raised $50M from renowned investors and operates across four continents. Learn more at www.sesamm.com

SESAMm’s AI Technology Reveals ESG Insights

Discover unparalleled insights into ESG controversies, risks, and opportunities across industries. Learn more about how SESAMm can help you analyze millions of private and public companies using AI-powered text analysis tools.

In October 2022, this multinational integrated energy and petroleum company found itself in the crosshairs of two non-government organizations (NGOs), accusing it of "exploiting a gas field used to manufacture kerosene used by Russian planes in their bombings in Ukraine," according to the French daily Le Monde. The accusations expressly point out the 16 March 2022 strike, which killed around 600 civilians taking shelter at a Mariupol theatre.

The company? TotalEnergies.

The NGOs? Razom We Stand (Ukraine) and Darwin Climax Coalitions (France).

Also, in October, TotalEnergies posted a third-quarter net profit amid these allegations. "The French group reported an adjusted net income of $9.86 billion, compared with $4.77 billion for the same period in 2021 and $9.8 billion in the second quarter of this year," per Reuters.

Should investors and asset and portfolio managers be concerned? Is this one instance of allegations a nothing burger, or is it a sign—one of many red flags—to evaluate? Let's find out in this edition of Alternative Data Trends: TotalEnergies.

Analyzing TotalEnergies's ESG and sentiment data

Company polarity and mentions volume

In the last year, mentions of TotalEnergies have gradually increased, spiking in March 2022. The spike in mentions coincides with a dip in the company's sentiment. These abrupt changes occurred when news broke about a lawsuit targeting TotalEnergies, claiming that the oil and gas group misled the public in its rebranding campaign, and a former French presidential candidate, Yannick Jadot, accused TotalEnergies of being complicit in war crimes.

After the spike in controversies in March 2022, TotalEnergies's web mentions continued to increase. And as a reflection of the mentions volume increases, the company's polarity decreases, moving in the direction of negative sentiment. News events triggering these movements include the legal case for allegedly fuelling Russian bombers and refinery strikes over wages.

ESG risks

A screening of TotalEnergies's ESG risks uncovers a similar trend. For example, our platform detects an increase in social risks as early as January 2022. This signal coincides with the company's exit from Myanmar because of human rights abuses.

Examining TotalEnergies's environmental risks

Environmental-related mentions volume

Let's take a closer look at TotalEnergies's environmental risks, specifically for general environmental strategy, climate change and atmospheric pollution, and biodiversity. The topic of climate change and atmospheric pollution takes the largest share of mentions. Web data driving this volume include:

• Accusations of downplaying climate risks
• TotalEnergies sued for alleged greenwashing.
• Investors pressuring TotalEnergies to align with the Paris Climate Agreement
• Pan-African civil society pressures TotalEnergies to halt EACOP
• Oil leak at TotalEnergies in Antwerp
• Paris and New York join climate litigation against TotalEnergies.

Studying TotalEnergies's social risks

Social-related mentions volume

TotalEnergies's social risks reveal even more controversies, looking at human rights, human capital, and customer relations topics. Human rights and human capital topics almost equally dominate topic mentions. Controversies highlighting the human rights topic include:

• Total and Le Drian turn a blind eye to a torture center in Yemen.
• Lawsuits regarding affiliations with oil projects in East Africa linked to the eviction of more than 100,000 people.
• And more.

Human capital topic controversies include:

• Multiple strikes on TotalEnergies's UK offshore platforms
• French union calls all-out strike for wages at TotalEnergies

Gauging TotalEnergies's governance risks

Governance-related mentions volume

Finally, let's look at TotalEnergies's governance risk, specifically within topics for influence strategy and communication, corruption, and board of directors (executive and company management). The influence strategy and communication topic dominates the mentions volume. These controversies relate to greenwashing, such as:

• Protests due to false claims regarding the company's transition to a "zero oil platform"
• Clashes with Greenpeace over 'inaccurate' greenwash claims
• Controversial rebranding
• Downplaying climate risks
• Misleading commercial practices

Recapping TotalEnergies's ESG risks and public perception

We only scratched the web data surface for information on TotalEnergies, but even with this overview, you can probably see a pattern. Should investors, asset managers, and portfolio managers be concerned about the latest allegations against TotalEnergies? Maybe. At the very least, the data shows you should dig into the research and ask more questions to mitigate any risks in your portfolio companies.

Reach out to SESAMm

SESAMm is a leading NLP technology company serving global investment firms, corporations, and investors, such as private equity firms, hedge funds, and other asset management firms, by providing datasets or NLP capabilities to generate their own alternative data for use cases, such as ESG and SDG, sentiment, private equity due diligence, corporation studies, and more.

For questions, access to the full report, or to request a TextReveal® demo, contact us here:

As the global sustainability conversation matures, so does the language. Concepts like blue bonds, carbon leakage, and financed emissions are no longer the domain of climate policy insiders; they’re now central to decision-making in boardrooms, supply chains, and marketing teams. Yet, as climate finance grows more complex, many professionals lack the vocabulary to keep up.

That’s where Vogue Business comes in. The publication has released a Climate Finance Glossary designed to decipher the technical terms reshaping corporate sustainability. While Vogue may be best known for fashion, this initiative acknowledges the deep financial implications of sustainability, particularly in industries like apparel, where environmental impact is closely tied to sourcing and production decisions.

From Carbon Budgets to Just Transition

The glossary includes more than two dozen terms, covering core themes like green and blue bonds, carbon border adjustments (CBAM), nature-based solutions, and the Just Transition. It also addresses frameworks that investors and regulators are now embedding in policy and disclosures, such as double materiality, ESG integration, and science-based targets.

The definitions are not oversimplified; they’re clear but grounded in academic and policy expertise. Contributors include researchers from the University of Exeter and Oxford’s Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment, lending credibility to what could otherwise be seen as a lightweight effort.

The result is a tool that helps close the gap between sustainability and finance teams, especially in companies navigating incoming ESG regulations like the EU’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) or the Green Claims Directive.

Why This Glossary Matters

Many sustainability professionals, especially those outside the finance world, are overwhelmed by ESG jargon. At the same time, finance teams often lack the environmental literacy to assess risks in areas like biodiversity loss or Scope 3 emissions. This glossary offers a shared language.

More than just a communications tool, it’s a strategic enabler. With greater climate disclosure, rising litigation risks around greenwashing, and investor expectations for transparency, understanding climate finance is no longer optional. It’s a baseline requirement for leadership.

This glossary arrives not a moment too soon for industries like fashion and retail, where storytelling, brand purpose, and supply chain transparency intersect.

Final Thoughts

The Vogue Business Climate Finance Glossary signals something larger: climate finance is no longer niche. It’s becoming a mainstream business competency. And when major business media take steps to make it more accessible, they’re not just informing; they’re helping shape the future of corporate sustainability.

As climate risk becomes investment risk and ESG moves from marketing to materiality, shared understanding will be the foundation of credible action.

SESAMm’s AI Technology Reveals ESG Insights

Discover unparalleled insights into ESG controversies, risks, and opportunities across industries. Learn more about how SESAMm can help you analyze millions of private and public companies using AI-powered text analysis tools.