April 2021
07Apr

Canada pension speeds up renewables push with new sustainable energy group

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) said on Tuesday it will create a new investment group that focuses on sustainable energy, in a bid to boost its portfolio of renewable energy investments. Read also The U.K.’s policy on overseas pensions is costing Canadian taxpayers Pension and infrastructure funds have been investing more in the renewable energy space, given the steady returns such assets generate, amid a push for tackle climate change. The new group, Sustainable Energy Group (SEG), will combine Energy &...

April 7, 2021
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March 2021
03Mar

Can the United States accelerate sustainability in financial regulations?

In the last few years, while multiple countries have made progress in developing sustainable-finance plans to help direct investment to climate solutions and environmentally beneficial companies and products, the United States, under the administration of former President Donald Trump, moved to weaken environmental regulations and discourage sustainable investing. With the arrival of President Joe Biden’s administration, the United States could rapidly roll out policies to make up lost ground. Sustainable-finance plans advance globally Around the globe, countries are stepping up to...

March 3, 2021
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February 2021
15Feb

How your retirement investments can help protect the environment

As a climate-conscious consumer, you might already be cutting down on your water use, buying from eco-friendly companies for your everyday needs, and making the switch away from single-use plastic. But have you thought about how your money is impacting the environment when it's not in use? Take your retirement account. If you're lucky enough to have retirement investment options, you most likely consider it a "set it and forget it" kind of decision. But there's good reason to go...

February 15, 2021
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10Feb

China. Green finance gets newfound incentivization

China will make it easier for international investors to access the country's green finance market by promoting the harmonization of domestic and global green standards as part of its efforts to achieve net-zero emissions by 2060, central bank officials said on Tuesday. Read also Asia needs pension reforms for sustainable growth The green finance industry in China needs to learn from the asset management experiences of foreign investors, such as multinational pension funds and insurance companies. Large capital injections are also...

February 10, 2021
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09Feb

Debt for Climate: Green Bonds and Other Instruments

By Paul Rose This chapter, prepared for the Edward Elgar Research Handbook on Climate Finance and Investment Law (2020, Michael Mehling and Harro van Asselt (eds.)), examines the rise of green bonds, climate bonds, and other green financial instruments. Although climate finance has enjoyed positive momentum in recent years, this momentum is at risk—with the possibility of reversal—if climate markets fail to provide competitive risk-adjusted returns. For climate finance to compete effectively, governments, issuers, and investors must resolve a...

February 9, 2021
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05Feb

Investigation: Dutch, Japanese pension funds pay for Amazon deforestation

Two pension funds in the Netherlands and one from Japan have invested a combined half a billion dollars in Brazil’s top three meatpackers. These investments in cattle ranching, an industry that’s the main driver of Amazon deforestation, contradict the environmental stances of the respective funds and their national governments. The fund managers and other experts say maintaining their stake is a more effective way of pushing for change in the companies than simply dumping the stock. But there’s also a growing realization...

February 5, 2021
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05Feb

UK. FCA Launches Defined Benefit Advice Assessment Tool

Last month, the FCA launched its Defined Benefit Advice Assessment Tool (“DBAAT“) as part of its strategy to reduce harm to consumers and improve the suitability of defined benefit (“DB“) transfer advice. The tool will help firms to understand precisely how the FCA assesses the suitability of DB transfer advice. Background The launch of DBAAT comes in light of the FCA’s concerns that consumers are being advised to move their pensions out of DB schemes, despite the fact that...

February 5, 2021
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05Feb

Debt for Climate: Green Bonds and Other Instruments

By Paul Rose This chapter, prepared for the Edward Elgar Research Handbook on Climate Finance and Investment Law (2020, Michael Mehling and Harro van Asselt (eds.)), examines the rise of green bonds, climate bonds, and other green financial instruments. Although climate finance has enjoyed positive momentum in recent years, this momentum is at risk—with the possibility of reversal—if climate markets fail to provide competitive risk-adjusted returns. For climate finance to compete effectively, governments, issuers, and investors must resolve a...

February 5, 2021
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04Feb

UK. Pension scheme trustees challenged over climate change reporting

The new regulations will require occupational pension schemes to have – and report on – effective governance, strategy, risk management and accompanying metrics and targets for the assessment and management of climate-related risks and opportunities. A key requirement is that pension schemes report disclosure aligned with the taskforce on climate-related financial disclosures (TCFD) framework. Since an earlier consultation in this area, the government has announced its intention to make TCFD-aligned disclosures mandatory across the economy by 2025, with a...

February 4, 2021
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January 2021

26Jan

US. NYC pension funds vote to divest $4 bln from fossil fuels

Two New York City pension funds voted to divest their portfolios of some $4 billion worth of fossil fuel company securities, Mayor Bill de Blasio, Comptroller Scott Stringer, and fund trustees said https://on.nyc.gov/39ejxHM. "Fossil fuels are not only bad for our planet and our frontline communities, they are a bad investment,” said de Blasio in a statement on Monday. New York was among a dozen big cities worldwide that pledged to shift their money out of the fossil fuel...

January 26, 2021
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