Why transition bonds have failed to make their mark
Highly polluting companies need trillions of dollars of funding to reduce their carbon emissions. Transition bonds are mooted as one solution, but investors are far from convinced.
Institution / Banks
Banks
Standard Bank points to climate progress amid activists’ anger
Africa’s largest lender has decided against funding three of the continent’s coal-power projects and committed to releasing a climate plan aligned with the goals of the Paris Agreement. But it is still lagging behind local peers, lobbyists say.
New Mifid rules risk damaging trust in ESG funds, experts fear
European proposals on ESG fund distribution are sparking worries about mis-selling, market fragmentation and, as a result, potentially reduced flows into such products.
Analysis: Protecting forests low down on investors’ priority list
UN Sustainable Development Goal 15 figures low on investors’ agenda, while their exposure to at-risk forest companies remains high.
The positive emergence of ESG-linked derivatives
Building trust in the nascent ESG-linked derivatives market is vital. But the hunt for liquidity could affect the impact of the new products. This will be a long-standing tension that needs to be monitored closely.
White Papers
Nordea grapples with balancing climate goals against client needs
The Finnish bank has set itself new sustainability targets. But it faces tricky decisions if it is to realise them, given its exposure to the key Nordic industries of shipping and fossil fuels.
JP Morgan holds firm on net-zero policies despite IEA’s warnings
One of the world’s most influential financiers of oil and gas remains reluctant to threaten clients with funding cuts as a means to hit net zero. The US bank argues its investment-led approach to reducing carbon intensity within sector hotspots goes far enough.
Oasis or mirage? Saudi Arabia’s green-funded ‘giga-project’
A $3.8bn loan raised by the Saudi government-owned Red Sea Development Company for a tourism development is long on ambition but short on green detail.
The dangers lurking within the blue economy
While the appetite for sustainable ocean economy opportunities is increasing, investors must pay more attention to the risks hidden therein.
How agri-finance innovator Olam is addressing the palm oil problem
Amid criticism of its palm oil business, the agricultural conglomerate has tapped the capital markets with a host of innovative green funding deals.
JP Morgan’s development finance institution strives to answer its doubters
The US bank has doubled down on efforts to facilitate private capital into sustainable projects in emerging markets. But its year-old development finance institution is so far finding it hard to measure the impact of such deals.
Can HSBC green the Middle East?
HSBC has its eyes on significantly growing its Middle East operations. But as the world's largest exporter of oil, the region's carbon footprint is entrenched. We assess whether Europe's largest bank has the appetite to confront these issues head on.
When central banks started to care about climate change
A new network of influential bankers has been extraordinarily successful in moving climate change risk management higher up the agenda. We spoke to its secretariat head and Banque de France official Morgan Després on how they did it.
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