On 21 April 2021, the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEPFI) published guidelines for climate targets setting for banks. The guidelines outline key principles to underpin the setting of credible, robust, impactful and ambitious targets in line with achieving the objectives of the Paris Agreement. The guidelines outline four principles for target-setting: Banks shall … Continue Reading
The European Commission has adopted a series of delegated regulations that help to drive investors towards more sustainable economic activities. The measures are part of the European Green Deal. The adopted delegated regulations are part of a suite of sustainability measures adopted at the same time including the EU Taxonomy Climate Delegated Act and the … Continue Reading
The European Commission (Commission) has published a number of legislative and regulatory initiatives in the context of its Sustainable Finance Action Plan. The aim of the Sustainable Finance Action Plan, which was first presented in 2018, is to channel more investment towards sustainable activities. The Commission has published the following initiatives: A Delegated Regulation under … Continue Reading
On 14 April 2021, the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (Basel Committee) published a report ‘Climate-related risk drivers and their transmission channels’. The report explores how climate-related financial risks can arise and impact both banks and the banking system. By synthesising existing literature, it illustrates how physical and transition climate risk drivers affect banks’ financial … Continue Reading
On 6 April 2021, the Financial Stability Board (FSB) published a letter from its Chair, Randal K. Quarles, to G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors ahead of their virtual meeting on 7 April. The FSB also delivered to the G20 a report on factors to be considered in extending, amending and ending COVID-19 support … Continue Reading
On 18 March 2021, the European Central Bank (ECB) published a blog post by its Vice-President, Luis de Guindos. The blog post, Shining a light on climate risks: the ECB’s economy-wide climate stress test, describes the framework for the economy-wide climate stress test that the ECB is currently conducting. The stress test is the first … Continue Reading
On 17 March 2021, the three European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs) issued a consultation paper on draft regulatory technical standards (RTS) regarding disclosures of financial products investing in economic activities that contribute to an environmental investment objective. The Taxonomy Regulation empowers the ESAs, by amending the Regulation on sustainability-related disclosures in the financial sector (SFDR), to … Continue Reading
On 1 March 2021, the European Banking Authority published an opinion in response to the European Commission’s call for advice on key performance indicators (KPIs) and related methodology for the disclosure by credit institutions and by investment firms of information on how and to what extent their activities qualify as environmentally sustainable in accordance with … Continue Reading
On 1 March 2021, the European Banking Authority (EBA) issued a consultation paper on draft implementing technical standards (ITS) on Pillar 3 disclosures on environmental, social and governance (ESG) risks. The draft ITS put forward comparable disclosures that show how climate change may exacerbate other risks within institutions’ balance sheets, how institutions are mitigating those … Continue Reading
On 1 March 2021, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) published its final report on advice under Article 8 of the Taxonomy Regulation, which covers the information to be provided by non-financial undertakings and asset managers to comply with their disclosure obligations under the Non-Financial Reporting Directive (NFRD). According to Article 8(1) of the … Continue Reading
On 25 February 2021, the European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs) published a joint supervisory statement designed to mitigate the risk of divergent application of the Regulation on sustainability related disclosures in the financial sector (SFDR) from 10 March 2021 to the application date of the regulatory technical standards (RTS) on the content, methodologies and presentation of … Continue Reading
On 24 February 2021, the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) issued a press release following a board meeting in which it discussed the progress made over the past year by its Sustainable Finance Task Force (STF). In the statement the ISOCO board identifies three priority areas for improvement in sustainability-related disclosures by companies and … Continue Reading
On 25 February 2021, the Financial Stability Board (FSB) published a letter from its chair to G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors. The letter notes the unprecedented challenges faced by the FSB due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the imposition of containment measures across the globe. The letter also discusses the key priorities in … Continue Reading
On 10 February 2021, the European Commission (Commission) published a summary report of the stakeholder consultation on the Renewed Sustainable Finance Strategy. On 11 December 2019, the Commission adopted its Communication on a European Green Deal (EGD), which significantly increases the EU’s climate action and environmental policy ambitions. However, the financial system as a whole … Continue Reading
We have published a new online briefing note – ESG for asset managers: 10 things you need to know. Our asset management regulation hub located on the Norton Rose Fulbright Institute contains a dedicated sustainable finance page setting out numerous resources to help financial institutions and investors who are facing a growing requirement to assess, … Continue Reading
On 4 February 2021, the European Supervisory Authorities published a final report containing draft regulatory technical standards (RTS) on the content, methodologies and presentation of sustainability-related disclosures under the empowerments set out in Articles 2a, 4(6) and (7), 8(3), 9(5) and 10(2) and 11(4) of the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR). The draft RTS relate … Continue Reading
On 3 February 2021, HM Treasury issued guidance concerning a joint statement on the International Platform on Sustainable Finance (IPSF). The IPSF was launched on 18 October 2019. Its members are public authorities in charge of developing environmentally sustainable finance policies in Argentina, Canada, Chile, China, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic … Continue Reading
On 29 January 2021, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) published a letter it had sent to the European Commission setting out its views on the main challenges in the area of environmental, social and governance (ESG) ratings and assessment tools. The letter builds on ESMA’s response to the Commission consultation on the renewed … Continue Reading
On 26 January 2021, the European Banking Federation and the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative co-launched a report that assesses how the EU Taxonomy can be applied to core banking products. The report is based on case studies analysing transactions and existing client relationships across a large spectrum of sectors, economic activities and geographical … Continue Reading
On 15 January 2021, the Joint Committee of the European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs) published a letter it had sent to the European Commission concerning priority issues relating to the draft regulatory technical standards (RTS) under Regulation 2019/2088 on sustainability-related disclosures in the financial services sector (SFDR). The letter reports that areas of uncertainty have been … Continue Reading
The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) has published a sensitivity analysis of climate-related transition risks in the investment portfolios of European insurers. The report considers the current holdings by European insurers of corporate bonds and equity that relate to key climate-policy related sectors such as fossil fuel extraction (i.e. coal mining), carbon‐intensive industries, … Continue Reading
The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) has published a discussion paper on non-life underwriting and pricing in light of climate change. The discussion paper is a follow-up to the EIOPA opinion on sustainability within Solvency II (published in September 2019) in which EIOPA noted that it was common for non-life business not to … Continue Reading
On 15 December 2020, the Network for Greening the Financial System (NGFS) announced the following new members: US Federal Reserve System, Central Bank of Paraguay, Financial Regulatory Authority of Egypt, Financial Services Authority of Indonesia, Central Bank of Iceland, Polish Financial Supervision Authority, Central Bank of Uruguay and the European Securities and Markets Authority. The … Continue Reading
The United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) is a partnership between UNEP and the global financial sector to mobilize private sector finance for sustainable development. The Principles for Responsible Banking (PRB) are a unique framework for ensuring that signatory banks’ strategy and practice align with the vision society has set out for its … Continue Reading
