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Beijing, 26 January 2016 – On 25-26 January 2016, the first meeting of the newly launched G20 Green Finance Study Group (GFSG) was held in Beijing, China. The meeting was attended by delegations from all G20 members, as well as 5 invited countries and 6 international organisations. This Study Group is co-chaired by China and the UK, with support from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) as secretariat.

This first GFSG meeting was convened to discuss the Study Group’s objectives and research subjects as part of the work programme for 2016. Areas of research were decided following a day and a half of discussions, with participants providing insights into the various options.

It was agreed that the GFSG would identify institutional and market barriers to green finance and, based on country experiences and best practices, analyse options on how to enhance the ability of the financial system to mobilize private green investment, thereby facilitating the green transformation of the global economy.

The GFSG will prepare a synthesis report, which will draw from the findings on the selected research subjects, before the July G20 finance minister and central bank governor meeting.

The GFSG will collaborate with other G20 groups and related external initiatives. It will also engage with the private financial community to benefit from its expertise and experience.

The next core meeting of the GFSG will take place in London, United Kingdom on 22 March 2016.

For more information, please contact:

Mahenau Agha, Head of Outreach, UNEP Inquiry: – +4179-105-3614

NOTES TO EDITORS

About UNEP Inquiry

The UNEP Inquiry into the Design of a Sustainable Financial System was established in January 2014 with a mandate to advance policy options that would improve the effectiveness of the financial system in supporting sustainable development.

Supported by a high-level Advisory Council of financial leaders, the Inquiry has looked in-depth at practice in more than 15 countries as well as across key segments of the financial system, such as banking, bond and equity markets, institutional investment, insurance as well as monetary policy. To reach its findings, the Inquiry has worked with central banks, environment ministries, international financial institutions as well as major banks, stock exchanges, pension funds and insurance companies. Its global report, The Financial System We Need, was released in October 2015 and is available at https://phpstack-1029349-3628312.cloudwaysapps.com/

London, 14 January 2016 – The UK is well-known as a major financial centre, but it is also a global hub in the fast-growing green finance arena, according to a new report released today by the UN Environment Programme’s (UNEP) Inquiry into the Design of a Sustainable Financial system.

The report comes as policymakers and financial institutions are focusing on how to mobilize the capital required to implement Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement on Climate Change which were agreed last year.

The report is being released at a major event co-hosted by UNEP and the City of London Corporation, where a new Green Finance Initiative will be launched by the City with the aim of making London the world leader in green finance.

UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner said, “2016 is set to be the year of green finance. Across the world, we are seeing a growing number of countries aligning their financial systems with the sustainability imperative. I wholeheartedly welcome this new green finance initiative from the City of London, the first of what’s likely to be a very busy year.”

Sir Roger Gifford, chair of the Green Finance Initiative, said “The City of London Corporation is determined that 2016 be the year in which policymakers and practitioners convene to drive the long-term development of the UK’s green finance sector. As the UN Environment Programme put it so clearly, the financial system we need is one that fully supports and facilitates the transition toward a low-carbon economy, and we believe London can play a leading role in this process.”

The report, entitled The UK: global hub, local dynamics – mapping the transition to a sustainable financial system profiles the actions that have been taken over the past 15 years to make environmental and social factors a core part of banking, capital markets, investment and insurance. It shows that the UK has evolved a distinctive model of innovation in sustainable finance, based on a close interaction between social entrepreneurs, mainstream financial institutions and, increasingly, financial policy and regulation. Importantly, this process has been deepened by the response to the global financial crisis, with a more profound focus on the systemic implications of issues such as climate change.

The report points to a number of firsts in sustainable finance that the UK has achieved. Back in 2000, the UK was the first country to require pension funds to state whether they took social and environmental issues into account. Last year, the Prudential Regulatory Authority, part of the Bank of England, undertook the world’s first review of the implications of climate change for the UK insurance sector.

Nick Robins, Co-director of the UNEP Inquiry and co-author of the report, said, “London is not just a global financial centre, but also a hub for green and sustainable finance. It is striking just how many key global initiatives are clustered in London – whether on responsible investment, green bonds, unburnable carbon, sustainable banking, climate disclosure or insurance risk.”

The report concludes that UK leadership in many areas is clear, yet sustainability could be classified as a ‘sleeping giant’ of the financial system. Based on deep interactions with UK stakeholders, the report closes with a set of priorities for a UK Sustainable Financial Strategy, including:

• Establish a Green Bond hub to take forward the UK’s position as one of the top issues of bonds focused on environmental solutions
• Empower individuals with the right information on the sustainability performance of their investments
• Rethink housing finance to reduce energy costs and environmental impacts
• Take a system-wide view on environmental risk, extending the Bank of England’s review of insurance to other sectors such as banking
• Explore the green potential of alternative finance, building on the UK’s leadership in areas such as peer to peer lending.

For more information, please contact:

Nick Robins, Co-director, UNEP Inquiry: [email protected] – +4179-197-9259

Mahenau Agha, Head of Outreach, UNEP Inquiry: [email protected] – +4179-105-3614

NOTES TO EDITORS

About UNEP Inquiry

The UNEP Inquiry into the Design of a Sustainable Financial System was established in January 2014 with a mandate to advance policy options that would improve the effectiveness of the financial system in supporting sustainable development.

Supported by a high-level Advisory Council of financial leaders, the Inquiry has looked in-depth at practice in more than 15 countries as well as across key segments of the financial system, such as banking, bond and equity markets, institutional investment, insurance as well as monetary policy. To reach its findings, the Inquiry has worked with central banks, environment ministries, international financial institutions as well as major banks, stock exchanges, pension funds and insurance companies. Its global report, The Financial System We Need, was released in October 2015 and is available at https://phpstack-1029349-3628312.cloudwaysapps.com/.

Paris, 9 December 2015 – Climate Bonds and UNEP Inquiry have tonight launched Scaling Green Bond Markets – Guide for the Public Sector during a COP21 Side Event at Shearman & Sterling Paris office.

The Guide is the result of a partnership between the Climate Bonds Initiative and the UNEP Inquiry into the Design of a Sustainable Financial System and contains range of specific actions for policy makers in both developed and developing economies.

Accompanying Scaling Green Bond Markets – Guide for the Public Sector is an Annex from the World Bank Group as an additional resource for policymakers in emerging economies to assist them in foundational bond market development.

The Guide contains three broad categories of recommendations on green bond development for public sector policy makers.

Fundamental actions: establishing a green project pipeline; strengthening local bond markets; strategic public green bond issuance and developing green standards.

Proven Support Tools: strategic public green bond investment; credit enhancement; tax incentives and developing instruments to aggregate assets and structure risks.

Innovative Additions: adjusting risk weightings for green investment and preferencing green investments in central bank operations.

Detailed action plans & international best-practice examples on how to grow green bond markets are included to assist in policy development. The application and mix for each country will depend on the specific macroeconomic context and policy priorities.

The findings of this report will also feed into an OECD report on green bonds, to be launched in 2016, and country-specific policy reports under development by the Climate Bonds Initiative.

Sean Kidney, CEO of the Climate Bonds Initiative, said:

“This guide can help the public sector in translating aspects of their national INDC objectives into climate finance outcomes. Adding green bonds into the climate finance mix can help the shift of capital to low carbon projects, infrastructure and climate resilient development. Credible, robust and liquid green bond markets can only accelerate the investment directions that INDCs in part, require, to meet individual country targets

“There is clear interest amongst policy makers to scale green bond markets. Here at COP21 green bonds are being identified as a potential new source of climate finance for cities, regions and low carbon infrastructure and projects across many sectors.”

 Nick Robins, Co-Director of the UNEP Inquiry, said:

“The potential opportunity of the green bond market has caught policy makers’ attention. There are increasingly examples of governments moving from interest to action. China’s central bank has published a range of ambitious policy proposals for green bonds, with official green bond guidelines launching soon. India’s capital markets regulator SEBI just announced green bond guidelines. In the EU, supporting green bond standards is included in Capital Markets Action Plan.”

“At COP21 many discussions have centered around climate finance and the level of investment needed to bring about low carbon outcomes. Green bond market development is seen as a real option. This report can only assist governments, policy makers and ultimately institutional investors in developing sustainable climate finance outcomes.”

 

 

 

Paris, 23 November 2015 – A week before the crucial COP 21 climate conference in Paris, a new report by the UNEP Inquiry into the Design of a Sustainable Financial System (UNEP Inquiry) and I4CE – Institute for Climate Economics – shows how France is successfully integrating sustainability factors into its financial architecture.

The report, entitled France’s Financial (Eco)system: improving the integration of sustainability factors, pinpoints the key steps taken by both public and private actors in France over the last two decades, with a focus on pioneering climate-related measures introduced this year.

UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner said, “France is part of a growing catalogue of examples around the world where sustainability is being factored into private and public financial decision-making. This shift in financial considerations is an element of the collective ambition we are seeing from all corners for a sustainable future. More than this, it demonstrates the accelerating momentum toward sustainability we will need to build on in Paris to tackle climate change.”

The study is the first in-depth analysis of the progressive mainstreaming of environmental issues in France’s financial sector. It highlights the country’s leadership in promoting the integration of sustainability and climate factors into financial decision-making.  This has most recently taken the form of new climate‑related reporting and risk assessment measures – notably Article 173 – which were adopted as part of the 2015 Law on Energy Transition for Green Growth.

Nick Robins, Co-director of the UNEP Inquiry, said, “This new report on France adds to the UNEP Inquiry’s in-depth analysis of actions that countries across the world are taking to align their financial systems with sustainable development. It shows how market and policy innovation can combine to improve the performance and resilience of the financial system.”

The official policy and regulatory framework is only one of the elements that contribute to greening France’s financial system. The report identifies a broad “ecosystem” of commercial, public sector and non‑profit actors who have played a key role in fostering the articulation of sustainability issues across the financial sector.

This extensive engagement and depth of expertise have been essential to building the momentum that led to this year’s climate-specific measures, notably the world-leading provisions for investors to disclose their contribution to energy transition and plans for climate factors to be included into bank stress tests.

Benoît Leguet, Managing Director at I4CE said, “The French approach focuses on improving the practice of all actors while leaving them enough space to act in the most appropriate way for their own interests and business models.”

Romain Morel, economist at I4CE, said, “France has developed a distinctive model where public and private initiatives reinforce each other to both raise awareness and promote concrete action.”

France’s track record is based on a growing attention to environmental, social and governance issues over the past fifteen years, with their formal integration into the regulatory framework beginning back in 2001. Since then, this oversight-based approach has been expanded to include additional issues, with measures:

• focusing on improving availability of information through the development of a comprehensive set of reporting measures targeting both the financial sector and the companies it finances;
• fostering the development of market-wide expertise through a mix of public and private initiatives and national debates on sustainable development issues gathering a broad range of stakeholders;
• driving improved risk assessment through minimum requirements for institutions to disclose their exposure to climate-related risks.

These measures have contributed to growing volumes of domestic climate finance in France, up from EUR 30 billion in 2011 to EUR 36 billion in 2013, according to I4CE research.

Hosting COP21 has provided an added stimulus for domestic efforts in France to green its financial system. Looking forward, the report highlights a set of priorities to maintain the momentum of policy and market innovation.

The French case study follows the recently published UNEP Inquiry global report, The Financial System We Need, which charts how the full potential of the financial system can be harnessed to deliver the transition to sustainable development.

For more information, please contact:

Romain Morel, Finance & Regulation Project Manager, I4CE: , +33‑1585-06018

Mahenau Agha, Head of Outreach, UNEP Inquiry: , +4179-105-3614

NOTES TO EDITORS

About I4CE – Institute for Climate Economics

I4CE – Institute for Climate Economics is an initiative of Caisse des Dépôts (CDC) and Agence Française de Développement (AFD). This think tank provides independent expertise and analysis when assessing economic issues relating to climate and energy policies in France and throughout the world.

www.i4ce.org

About UNEP Inquiry

The UNEP Inquiry into the Design of a Sustainable Financial System was established in January 2014 with a mandate to advance policy options that would improve the effectiveness of the financial system in supporting sustainable development.

Supported by a high-level Advisory Council of financial leaders, the Inquiry has looked in-depth at practice in more than 15 countries as well as across key segments of the financial system, such as banking, bond and equity markets, institutional investment, insurance as well as monetary policy. To reach its findings, the Inquiry has worked with central banks, environment ministries, international financial institutions as well as major banks, stock exchanges, pension funds and insurance companies. Its global report, The Financial System We Need, is available at https://phpstack-1029349-3628312.cloudwaysapps.com/.

Paris, 4 November 2015 – I4CE – Institute for Climate Economics and UNEP Inquiry into the Design of a Sustainable Financial System fostered a discussion on the steps taken – and the challenges and opportunities ahead – to build a sustainable financial system. The event presented the conclusions of the recently published UNEP Inquiry global report “The Financial System We Need” followed by the presentation of the case study on France written by I4CE.

Click here for Details:

Lima, 8 October 2015 – A new UNEP report released at the International Monetary Fund (IMF)/World Bank Annual Meetings shows how to harness the assets of the world’s financial system for sustainability.

The key findings are that:

• A ‘quiet revolution’ is underway as financial policymakers and regulators take steps to integrate sustainable development considerations into financial systems to make them fit for the 21st century.
• Momentum is building and is largely driven by developing and emerging nations including Bangladesh, Brazil, China, Kenya, and Peru, with developed country champions including France and the UK.
• Amplifying these experiences through national and international action could channel private capital to finance the transition to an inclusive, green economy and support the realization of the Sustainable Development Goals.

Click here for Details:

New York, 24 September 2015 – The Inquiry is in New York for the Climate Week and will speak at “Funding the Low Carbon Transition – The Role of the Financial System” organized by the Fundazione Eni Enrico Mattei (FEEM) and France Stratégie. The debate is expected to focus on the need to explore monetary financing of green as outlined in the policy paper from France Stratégie earlier this year. The Inquiry will present highlights of its findings of the 18-month Inquiry into the Design of a Sustainable Financial System.

Read France Stratégie policy brief: http://blog.en.strategie.gouv.fr/2015/02/policy-brief-proposal-finance-low-carbon-investment-europe/

London, 24 September 2015 – The Inquiry will be contributing to the Financial Stability Board meeting on climate change in London today and will present to the Finance Innovation Lab to share highlights of its findings of the 18-month Inquiry into the Design of a Sustainable Financial System.

More about the Finance Innovation Lab event: http://financeinnovationlab.org/pathfinders/home/

Sao Paulo, 22 September 2015 – The Inquiry moderates a discussion on Banking Regulation, Environmental and Social Risks and Incentives to Environmental and Social Finance at the 44°Café com Sustentabilidade hosted by the Brazilian Federation of Banks (FEBRABAN).

Sao Paulo, 21 September 2015 – The Inquiry launches a joint publication together with the Climate Bonds Initiative and the World Bank, “Scaling Green Bond Markets for Sustainable Development”. A full version of the guide, which will provide practical options for policy makers to scale up green bond markets for sustainable development, will be launched in November 2015.

Read the report here.