One of Africa’s biggest polluters, energy and chemicals group Sasol has repeatedly refused to table resolutions calling for disclosure of climate lobbying activities. Similarly obstructive tactics have been used elsewhere, including in Europe.
As another emerging economy gears up to tap international markets with a green bond, Capital Monitor explores how much potential there is for governments to make their debt sustainable.
A corporate treasurer’s work has historically revolved around cash flow forecasts, but increasingly involves defining sustainability key performance indicators and monitoring ESG data. Miguel Silva Gonzalez of Dutch supermarket giant Ahold Delhaize gives his take.
The chief investment officer of Spanish insurer Mapfre says EU regulators' attempts to supervise sustainable assets are too prescriptive, in that they lack essential interpretative context. This, he adds, is also partly why external ESG ratings fail to add major value.
The lucrative business of securities lending – often criticised for lacking transparency and not being aligned with long-term responsible investment – is in the spotlight more than ever. But ESG-related standards are being developed for the industry.
Often cash-flush and shy of scrutiny, higher education institutions have not typically felt the need or inclination to raise green bonds, despite their suitability for such funding. That is changing, with private placements seen as increasingly popular.
AkademikerPension, ATP and PensionDanmark are increasingly heavily focused on green investing but take different approaches to renewable energy and high-carbon assets, and to climate transition in general.
Despite their good intentions, customers are misled by the marketing and brand power of big companies when they try to shop sustainably. Regulators are taking note.
Over 2,000 governments and businesses have signed up to some form of net-zero commitment, but, in the midst of a 'code red' for humanity, 2050 feels a very long way away. Richard Mattison, president of S&P Global Sustainable1, discusses how we can accelerate progress.
Banks account for around half of the $130trn in private capital Mark Carney said at the Cop26 summit was aligned with net zero, but there is widespread scepticism about the announcement. Senior executives from some of the biggest lenders give Capital Monitor their take.
There are calls for regulation to support the new global commitment to cutting methane levels, seen as one of the quickest ways to tackle climate change. But how it will be funded is unclear, and the absence of China, India and Russia from the pledge does not bode well.
Capital Monitor research shows that only one in four banks have linked CEO pay to environmental impact metrics, and the ESG targets that have been set often lack transparency and impact – despite growing stakeholder pressure to address such issues.
Despite positive noises at Cop26, analysis conducted by Capital Monitor of lenders’ fossil fuel policies underlines why critics remain sceptical of the Net-Zero Banking Alliance’s ability to get signatories to align with International Energy Agency recommendations.
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